


The Harrowing Adventures of Luz the Human

by Luciferical



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, I am too lazy for this, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:27:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 52,342
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26654401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Luciferical/pseuds/Luciferical
Summary: What would have happened if Luz went to summer camp instead of the Boiling Isles? 18 years old and lost in life, Luz stumbles upon a wounded owl in the woods. What happens next will blow your socks off.
Relationships: Amity Blight/Luz Noceda
Comments: 82
Kudos: 224





	1. Going Nowhere

**Author's Note:**

> This is me coping with hiatus. Enjoy!

Boxes.

Boxes everywhere.

Looking around wildly, I groaned, dreading what was coming next. My muscles were tense, the small space of the box I was trapped in doing nothing to alleviate it. Rolling my shoulder, I struggled to stretch out my cramping limbs in the small space, pushing against the box with all my might.

Frustration rose in me. “come on! Just… break already!” I hissed through clenched teeth, though I knew it wouldn’t. Unable to move, panic quickly set in, hot tears trailing down my face as I screamed for air, desperate to escape. I buried my head in my arms, weeping.

I heard whispers around me, escalating rapidly into jeering voices. “Ha! Look at this one. Pathetic,” crowed the loudest, “don’t you worry sweetheart, we’ll make you normal again.”

Whimpering, I covered my ears in a vain effort to block them out. “It’s not real,” I muttered to myself, “This never happened. Don’t listen, it’ll be over soon.” Raising my head, I glanced around the small box, hoping without hope that an exit would appear.

The voices simply laughed at my efforts to shrug them off, “Is this not real enough for you? It’s more real than those garbage books you read.” Chackling, the voices materialized into shadowy figures, standing over my box like a troop of grim reapers.

“Luz!” They cried.

“Luuuz!”

“LUZ!”

I woke with a yelp, falling out of bed with a loud _thunk_. I looked around in confusion, remembering after a second that I was home, and the summer camp was long in the past. Groaning, I hit my head back against the floor, taking a second to recover before standing up shakily and making my way towards the door.

“Mija? Are you alright?” Mom’s concerned voice floated down the hall.

Opening the door, I called back, “Yeah, I’m fine! Just fell out of bed.” I walked out towards the kitchen, the nightmare fading from my mind. Walking through the entryway, I smiled at her before hopping up on the counter. “Do you need to go into work today?”

She shook her head. “Not until tonight, I’m on night shift.”

Nodding, I twisted around and opened the cabinet beside me, grabbing a granola bar. I jumped down, shoved it in my pocket, and made my way to the front door, throwing on a pair of shoes. “I’m going out for a walk Mami!” I said, opening the door.

“Luz, wait!”

I looked back at her, raising my eyebrows in question.

“Once you get back, I want you to start looking for a job. You can’t just stay in the house all day, Mija.”

 _Oh great_ , I thought. “I’ll… think about it.” With a weak smile, I stepped outside and closed the door, cutting off my view of her disappointed face.

“That was close,” I muttered, looking down the empty street with a sigh. Glancing down, I realized I was still in my pajamas. Shrugging, I set off at a slow walk, not wanting to go back inside and face Mami again. “Otter-print shirt, meet the world!” I cried, dramatically throwing my arms out.

“What the fuck…?”

I froze, not realizing there was someone else nearby. Without turning to see the person, I spun on my heel and launched myself into the forest lining the sidewalk. Naturally, I then tripped on a rock and fell, letting out a surprised squeak as I hit the ground. Grumbling, I picked myself up and continued walking into the woods, not really caring where I was going.

Sighing, I ran my hand through my short hair, tousling it until the ends stuck out haphazardly. “Stupid adulting,” I muttered under my breath, “Stupid!”

I wandered deeper into the forest, the sunlight fading as the trees grew taller and more twisted. I began to feel nervous. “This isn’t creepy at all,” I laughed uneasily, “totally not a place murders would hide the bodies of their victims. Definitely not!”

The wind began to pick up, sending the tall branches waving in a dull symphony of creaks and groans. The bushes around me began rustling, making me yelp and jump backwards. “It's okay! Just the wind…” I reassured myself anxiously.

A deep, guttural growl split the air, followed by a loud _crack_. I flinched, reaching down slowly and grabbing a heavy stick. My voice was shaky, “Okaayy, so _not_ the wind.” Glancing around wildly, I caught a glimpse of a small object falling to the forest floor. Sucking in a breath through clenched teeth, I slowly made my way towards it, trembling.

As I got closer, the little object took form. It was a bird, small and brown with big yellow eyes. An owl.

“You scared me, owl!” I said, letting out the breath I’d been holding, relieved. I dropped the stick, crouching beside the little creature, who stared at me with big eyes but made no effort to fly away. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” I spoke to him quietly, keeping my movements slow and cautious. Reaching out, I tried to touch the owl, pulling back when he flinched at the proximity.

“Hey, it’s okay! I won’t hurt you.” Slowly reaching into my pocket, I pulled out the granola bar, slightly squished from my fall. “Are you hungry little buddy? Here.” I broke the granola bar into little pieces, slowly placing the crumbly pile in front of the owl before drawing back and leaning back against a tree behind me.

The owl watched me for a minute, unease clear in his eyes. I sat patiently, waiting for him to make a decision. With a quiet _hoot_ , the owl hopped forward, then began to devore the granola.

“Wow! You’re a hungry little guy, aren’t you?” I exclaimed, watching as he swallowed the last of the pile. He sat up, yellow eyes fixed on me, before slowly stepping forward, cautiously making his way forwards me, making pitiful hooting sounds all the while. “Sorry, that’s all I have,” I said regretfully, “but if you’d come with me, there’s more at home.” Hope started to rise in me as the owl appeared to consider it, before quickly falling when a snarl sounded in the bushes behind the owl, which immediately got a frantic look in his eyes and dove into my lap, hiding his face in my dirt-covered shirt.

“Mierda!” I cursed, quickly standing up and tucking my arms around the little owl to stop him from falling. Turning, I took off at a run through the trees, hoping to make it back to my home before whatever was in the woods decided that a lanky human would make a good snack. After a couple panic-filled minutes, I finally burst through the boundary of the forest, quickly slowing to a fast walk to avoid embarrassing myself again.

I glanced down at the owl; who’s head was already tilted up so that his eyes were focused on my face. I smiled at his cuteness. “You are adorable, pollito!” I squealed softly. “Don’t worry, you’re safe now. Do you want to come back with me? I have more granola bars you can eat!” He glanced at the forest, then back at me. With a small _hoot_ , he buried his head in my shirt again, making me grin. I softly started to stroke his head my free hand, internally awwing at how soft he was. “Well, you met the right human! My name’s Luz, Luz Noceda. I’ll take care of you niño, don’t you worry! You’re gonna love my house.” I continued rambling to the little owl, who just stared up at me with wide eyes.

After a couple minutes, we arrived at my house. I shifted the owl in my arms, freeing a hand and opening the door. “Mami, I’m back!” I called, “and I brought a friend!”

“A friend?” returned my mom’s shocked voice, which instantly turned skeptical. “Not another imaginary one, is it?”

I rolled my eyes. “No, Mami. I found him in the forest, I saved him from certain doom!” I walked into the living room, where mom sat reading a book. “See?” I motioned to the little owl, “he came back with me, willingly! Isn’t he cute?”

“Aww bebe!” she cooed. Then realization struck her, and she sat up. “Luz! That’s a wild animal! You can’t just keep it as a pet.”

“But Mom!” I whined, “he’s hurt! I don’t know where, but it doesn’t seem like he can fly. Shouldn’t we take care of him?” As if to prove my point, the owl fluffed up his feathers, letting out a sad series of hoots as he stared at my mother with big, pitiful yellow eyes.

She watched him for a moment, scanning her eyes over his small form. “Ay dios mio,” she mumbled, pushing her glasses up and rubbing her eyes. “Alright, fine. He can stay until he’s better. Just… don’t get attached, okay Mija? This isn’t a permanent thing.”

I squealed, doing a happy fist-pump with my free hand. “Thank you Mami! I promise you won’t regret this!”

She chuckled, “I hope not. Now, bring him here. Let’s see if we can figure out what’s wrong with him.”

Nodding, I sat down next to her, moving my hands away from the owl so that she could see, leaving him perched uneasily on my lap, staring up at us.

“Hey there, pollito,” she said in a soft voice, “It’s okay, I won’t hurt you.” Reaching out a hand, she gently stroked his head.

He blinked slowly, His feathers flattening out as he relaxed. My mom gently ran her hand across his little body, frowning slightly. “Well, I don’t feel any broken bones,” she said, eyebrows furrowing as she concentrated. She gently unfolded one of his wings, letting go quickly when he flinched and yanked it from her with a pained _hoot_. “He probably just pulled a muscle in his wings,” she sighed, “that should heal in a week, two at most. In the meantime, he can stay here... but you’re cleaning up after him!” she added, shaking a finger at me.

“Thank you! Don’t you worry, I’ll care of everything.” Picking up the owl, I moved into the kitchen, setting him down gently on the counter. Grabbing a little container, I filled it up with water, placing it next to him. I then opened the cabinet and grabbed another granola bar, crumbling it into a little pile, pushing it in front of the owl to eat. “There you go, buddy! Now, you stay here, enjoy the granola. I’m gonna go change out of my pajamas real quick.”

Smiling at him, I turned and made my way to my room, closing my door behind me. I yawned, tired from the eventful morning. Grabbing my phone, I looked at the time, groaning. _Only 10:30? Geez. I need more sleep_ , I thought to myself. Sighing, I took off my otter shirt and sweatpants, grimacing slightly at the dirt that covered them. _Oh well_ , I thought, chucking them onto the floor. Moving to my dresser, I grabbed a pair of grey jeans and a white shirt, throwing them on before turning to my closet. “Ah, my old home,” I sighed wistfully, cackling a little at my bad joke. “Glad I’m not in there anymore!” I pulled out a purple, black, and white checkered flannel, putting it on as I left my room.

Entering the kitchen, my eyes immediately went to the little owl, who was sitting right where I left him, waiting for me. “Hey buddy!” I chirped, “I don’t know about you, but I’m tired. Wanna take a nap with me?”

He spread his wings a bit, letting out a small hoot. Chucking, I gently picked him up and walked into the living room, laying down on the couch and setting the bird on my stomach. I saw my mom glance at me with amusement, though she didn’t say anything and went back to reading her book. Yawning, I folded my arms behind the owl and closed my eyes, feeling little pricks from his talons as he waddled up my chest, nestling himself against my neck. I smiled, content, and drifted off to sleep to the sound of little owl snores.

_SLAM_

I startled, sitting up suddenly, scrambling to catch the owl as he fell.

My mom’s voice floated towards me from the front door. “Luz? I’m back!”

I laid back down, murmuring a brief apology to the owl, who’s feathers were fluffed up in surprise. After a moment, he settled back down. “Mami? You scared me. Where’d you go?”

“The grocery store. Did you not hear me, carino?” she replied, “I told you before I left.”

“No, I was asleep.” I rubbed my eyes, trying to wake up. “What time is it?”

She poked her head into the living room, amusement shining on her face. “It’s almost four, you’ve been asleep for hours. This is why you need a job.” She chuckled at the owl, who was still grumpy from his wake-up call. “Aw, sleepy pollito,” she cooed, taking the grocery bags into the kitchen. “I’m going to shower, then I need to head into work. Do you need me to make you something for supper?”

I groaned, “I napped for six hours? Ay dios mio... That’s okay, I’ll scrounge up something.” A sound of affirmation came from the kitchen. Yawning, I felt my eyes start to close again, and slipped back into unconsciousness.

I woke to a tap on my head, opening my eyes to see my now concerned mother standing over me. “Are you feeling alright, Mija?”

I smiled weakly, “Yeah, sorry. Just tired I guess.”

She didn’t look convinced, but smiled back anyways. “Alright. I’m off to work. Text me if you need something, and take care of our little guest,” she added, giving the owl a scratch on the head, her smile widening at the sleepy _hoot_ she got in response.

“Bye Mami, have a good night at work.”

I lay there for a minute, hearing the front door close with a thud. Yawning, I stretched my arms over my head, looking down my chest at the little owl perched on my stomach, glaring at me. “Fine, fine. I’m getting up,” I mumbled, “You’re very demanding, pollito.” In response, he simply reached up a foot and scratched his belly. My eyes zeroed in on his foot, noticing a little indent shaped like a lilypad in the middle of it. “What’s that, buddy?” reaching out, I gently touched the indent. “It almost feels like wood…” I muttered, furrowing my brow in confusion.

The little owl hooted at me, placing his foot back down and curling his talons into my shirt, painfully catching my skin along with it. “Okay!” I exclaimed, “Alright, I’m getting up! Gee, no need for that.” I stood up, holding the innocent-looking culprit in my arms. “You’re lucky you’re so cute…”

Dimly, I heard a low knock on the front door. _Ugh, people_ , I thought disgustedly, groaning as I made my way to the door. Looking through the peephole, I saw a nondescript man standing there awkwardly, raising his hand to knock again. Quickly, I pull the door open, making him pull bak his hand in suprise. “Hello,” I said politely, “Can I help you?”

He didn’t respond, looking at me instead with wide eyes that seemed too big for his head, the pupils merely silvers of black. His gaze dropped down to the owl cradled in my arms, and he smiled, displaying crooked, browned teeth: each longer and sharper than they should have been. My skin to crawl as revulsion trickled through me. I stepped back, quickly slamming the door, only for it to bounce back as it hit his hand. He pulled the door back open, ripping it out of my hands. His eyes bore into mine; translucent eyelids came in from the side, like a snake’s, and closing with a little _shink_.

I tried to scream, tried to run, but my muscles were frozen in place, caught in a trap set by the man’s eyes. _No, not a man,_ I realized _, a thing. A monster._ His grin elongated. Literally. His cheeks split open, the now loose flaps of skin swaying lightly as teeth protruded up from them, growing longer and longer until they could have been mistaken for fingers. Very sharp fingers. His ears then grew as well; becoming at least a foot long and pointed, the skin stretching until I could see the outline of the cartilage beneath it, until I could watch the blood rush to fill the new lengths of veins.

I was horrified, my mind frozen on _Holy Shit!_ and unable to think through my terror. I felt a small weight land on my shoulder and flinched when the owl’s beak dug into my cheek. And suddenly I was free. I fumbled, grasping for the baseball bast my mom insisted we keep at the door, finally grabbing it and slamming it as hard as I could into the thing’s misshapen skull, snapping its head to the side and causing it to stumble back and fall, tripping over its growing tail, a horrifying length of stretched skin and vertebrae; lacking any fur or hair to disguise it.

The owl yanked on my ear, pulling me out of my shock. I pulled the door closed and took off at a run for the forest, knowing the house wouldn’t be safe. Reaching the trees, I continued at a breakneck pace down an overgrown deer trail, trying not to fall and literally break my neck. After what felt like hours, I burst out into a clearing, immediately slowing to a stop and hurling, my stomach trying to reject the memories of its transformation. The owl hopped off my shoulder with a disgusted _hoot!,_ opting instead to perch in a bush next to me, soothing little sounds coming from his throat.

Shaking, I slowly stood upright; my lungs burning and my legs trembling with fatigue. I looked around unsteadily, my panicked gaze darting around the clearing, searching for any sign of the monster. I sighed in relief. “That was a close call, wasn’t it pollito,” I huffed through my labored breathing, turning to the bush where he had been perched, only for it to be vacant. I froze, glancing around wildly before finally spotting him waddling away towards the edge of the clearing, towards… “a house?” I said in disbelief. “How did I miss that?” Shaking my head, I jogged tiredly after the pesky bird, catching up quickly and scooping him off the ground.

“Where are you going pollito?” I asked him in bewilderment. The owl turned his head towards the ruined house, hooting at me. “Alright,” I sighed, “but I hope you know where you’re going.” I took off at a slow jog, groaning as my muscles protested the movement.

As we neared the house, the owl started struggling in my arms, causing me to come to a stop. “What’s wrong?” I asked the little bird, loosening my grip. Immediately, he sprang out of my hold, alighting on the grass and waddling his way towards a bush, disappearing for a moment. “Come on buddy,” I said anxiously, looking around, “we can’t stay here for too long. Don’t want that thing to catch up with us.”

The bush started shaking, and I watched in disbelief as he dragged out a cloth sack, which he dropped to the ground at my feet. “What’s this?” I muttered curiously, kneeling down and opening it. The owl hopped onto my shoulder, watching. My confusion grew as I pulled out an old teapot, quickly followed by a teddy bear, a baseball glove, and other weird objects. I glanced at the owl on my shoulder in bewilderment. “Why do you have a bag of junk?” He merely gave me a _hoot_ in response and looked down at the bag pointedly. Groaning, I tipped it upside down and watched the items inside come cascading out of it, wincing at the noise it made. At last, the bag was empty, and I tossed it to the side to inspect the stuff in front of me. The owl let out another little _hoot_ , hopping down from my shoulder and onto the pile, using his feet to throw items to the side. A distant roar sounded from the direction I figured my house was in. I gulped, “Hey, you think you could hurry it up a bit?” The owl merely glanced at me before going back to work.

I sat down, nervously tapping my fingers against my knees as I look around. After a minute, there was a tap on my shoe. I looked down at the owl, who had a dusty brown key clutched in one of his feet. He gracelessly hopped onto my knee, landing awkwardly due to the key. Reaching out, I took the offered key; it was wooden and oddly shaped, having two curved prongs sticking out on one side, and an intricate design at the base. I turned it over, inhaling sharply in shock when I noticed a big, yellow eye in the base. “Wow. That’s really cool,” I whispered. Then, it blinked.

“Gah!” I dropped the key in my surprise. It landed eye-up, the thin pupil starng at me accusingly. The owl glared at me, telling me to pick it back up. So, I did. This time, I studied it closely, reveling at the detail carved in the wooden key. Hesitantly, I touched the eye, finding it to be cool and dry, giving a little beneath my finger. Curiously, I put more pressure on it, causing the eye to fully recede into the key. Nothing happened. I moved my finger off it, disappointed.

As soon as my finger left the surface of it, the eye turned a searing white. I winced, dropping the key in favor of putting my hands over my eyes, trying to block out the bright, blinding light. Then, as suddenly as it had come, the light faded. Cracking my fingers open, I peeked out cautiously, my jaw dropping at what was now in front of me.

“Ay dios mio…” I gasped breathlessly, staring. Instead of there being a key on the ground, there was now a whole door, which was even more intricate than the key, though with the same big, yellow eye at its center, although much bigger now. The eye blinked at me again, then the doorhandle turned on its own, opening to bright, white nothingness.

The owl hopped off my knee, waddling towards the door. I stood shakily, bringing my hands up to my chest, unsure of what to do. “H-hey! What’s through there?” I asked the little owl desperately. He stopped right at the threshold, looking back at me, then stepped through the door with a _hoot_. I stumbled forward in a vain effort to stop him, coming to a halt once I realized he was gone.

I stood there, indecisive. The light was warm, as if encouraging me to step through. “Hmmm. Terrifying monster or unknown portal?” I pondered, my voice shaking. Then the sound of cracking branches reached me. A few hundred feet away, the monster burst through the edge of the clearing, snarling ferociously once it spotted me, hurling itself on thickened limbs towards me. I yelped, “Portal! Definitely portal!” I jumped through, landing in a forest much wilder than the one I left. Turning sharply, I quickly pulled the door closed behind me. As soon as the handle clicked home, the door folded in on itself, shrinking back down into the key. Grabbing it off the ground, I shoved it in my pocket and stood up, looking around in bewilderment. “Owl? Are you here, pollito?” I called out hesitantly.

_Hoot!_

I turned, seeing the little owl on the ground a few feet away. Bending down, I scooped him up and held him against my chest. “Oh. You scared me,” I sighed, “Sooo, where are we? And how do we get out of this forest?” I glanced at the owl, who’s head was turned towards a path heading off to my right. “Ah, okay,” I murmured, and set of down it. After what must have been thirty minutes of walking, I suddenly burst from the trees, my jaw dropping at the sight in front of me. “Oh, holy fuck.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter got a little darker than I meant for it to be, however I think it fits. Everything is a metaphor :)  
> Don't worry, the other chapters will (probably) be lighter. I make no promises.


	2. Coming Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly wasn't expecting people to read this, so thank you! Especially to those who commented, reading them gave me a burst of motivation, and I spent all day writing this so that I could post it tonight. Enjoy!

I stood on the edge of a cliff, the red ground dropping off sharply at my feet. A hundred meters below boiled a violet sea, stretching on as far as I could see. In the distance, a long, narrow peninsula extended into the teeming waters, ending abruptly in a collection of jagged spires. The night sky was bright with stars and a gleaming moon.

“Oh,” I said in a soft voice, “Mami is not going to be happy with this.” I looked all around; my eyes wide as I tried to take in everything at once. A laugh bubbled up my throat. “Mierda! I’m in another world!” I put my hands on my head, trying and failing to contain my glee. “This is just like the sixth Azura book! And only slightly more terrifying!”

A hoot sounded in my ear, making me jump in surprise. “Oh, sorry pollito! I got distracted, this place is just so… wonderful!” Turning my head to look at the little owl, I saw his eyes narrowed in a glare. “Right, right, la siento. Which way now?” The owl turned his head to the right, looking down the gently declining ground that ran parallel to the not-so-gentle cliff. Nodding, I set off down the hill, still admiring the foreign scenery.

After a couple minutes, a distant house came into view. It was peculiarly bell-shaped, the outside done in cracking white plaster that had begun to erode in some places. Near the top of the bell-curve there was a giant stained glass eye made up of varying shades of yellows with a vertical red slash for a pupil. Beside the house, a gray brick tower rose. It looked awesome.

“Is this where you live?” I asked the owl, excitement shining in my voice. He looked at me solemnly.

“That’s so cool! Did you build it yourself? Wait, no. That’s stupid, of course you didn’t! You don’t have thum-” I came to a sudden stop as a bizarre, brown tube stretched out of the door. “What the...?” I watched in bewilderment as it floated towards me, my eyes widening as it realized it was… an owl? Or, it had the face of one, at least. It had no other bird-like features, not even wings, and its long, cylindrical, body just kept extending out of the door. Its beak opened, and out came an annoyingly grating voice.

“Oh boy, friends!!”

I inhaled sharply, turning to run. But it was too late. Its awful body was surprisingly soft and squishy as it wrapped itself in circles around me, tightening until I couldn’t move. The little owl on my shoulder peeped in annoyance, hopping into my flannel to avoid falling.

“Hey! Let me go!” I yelped, grabbing hold of its body for support as my feet left the ground.

“Eda!” It crowed, “You have a guuueeesssttt.”

I heard the door open, and a peeved voice rang out.

“Dang it, Hooty! I swear, if you’re abducting random people again, I _will_ sell you to the demon hunters.” A sigh followed. “Now, drop it.”

“Gah!” Suddenly, I was free. I fell to the ground, landing hard on my back, the air whooshing out of my lungs on impact. I recovered quickly, sitting up and scooting away from the demented bird. My gaze flitted between it and the woman standing next to it. She was tall, wearing a tattered red dress, and had a poofy mane of gray hair. Her face was angular, with big, golden eyes and pointed ears. A golden snaggle tooth, which looked suspiciously like a fang, poked out of her mouth. Dark grey feathers coated her crossed arms.

“A human?” She exclaimed, eyebrows rising to her hairline. “Where’d you get one of these?”

“I found it!” the tube answered, “walking towards the house!”

The lady sighed, rubbing her eyes tiredly. She looked at me. “Kid, what are you doing here? This isn’t your world.”

I gulped, trying to find my voice. “We-well," I stuttered, "I was hel-helping an owl. There was a monster. Th-the owl led me through a door, and here I am.” Shaking, I stood upright, gently pulling the owl from my flannel and showing him to the intimidating woman.

Her eyes narrowed. She drew a small circle of glowing, golden light with her hand, making me gasp. The little owl floated out of my grasp, towards the lady. A sound of distress rose in my throat as I reached out, trying to catch the owl and missing. The owl landed on her shoulder, nuzzling up against her throat and cooing. She looked down at him with a smile. Then she turned back to me, the smile dropping and anger alighting in her eyes.

She snarled, “You _stole_ Owlbert? Wrong move, human. You’ll die for that.” Raising her hand, she drew another circle and then closed her fist, making my limbs snap together and causing me to fall to the ground, panic rising as I writhed around, trying to break free.

“I didn’t steal… Owlbert. I rescued him!” I shouted at her desperately, “there was a monster after him!” Tears began to trail down my face as the invisible bonds tightened, carving lines through the dirt. “Please…”

She paused, looking back at the owl as if asking for clarification and earning a series of hoots in response. She sighed, opening her fist and freeing me. “Fine, I believe you.” She turned, walking inside the house. “Now, go away.”

I stood, brushing off my clothes and calling after her. “Hey, wait a second!”

She turned, placing a hand on the side of the door and raising an eyebrow, “What do you want, human? I’m very busy.”

I hesitated, unnerved by her ferocious expression. “Where am I…?” I asked quizzically, “Are you magic?” Excitement grew in me as I waited for her answer.

She grinned ferally at me. “Kid, welcome to the Boiling Isles!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms out and narrowly missing the door frame, loose feathers drifting down from her plumage. “Home of witches, demons, and assorted vermin. I’m Eda the Owl Lady, and the most powerful witch you’ll ever meet.” She stared at me smugly and leaned against the frame, clearly waiting for my adoration. From his perch on her shoulder, Owlbert rolled his eyes.

I promptly gave it to her. “Holy shit, that’s awesome!” I said, “this is _exactly_ like Azura book six!” I bounced over to her, latching onto her arm excitedly. “My name’s Luz! Can you teach me how to do magic? Please?! I’ll do anything!”

Eda shook me off with a disgusted sound. “Kid… No. Humans can’t do magic; your fragile body just isn’t built for it.” She ran a hand through her hair. “Besides, you have your own world to get back too. So, shoo.” She turned to go inside and started to close the door.

I froze, the memories of why I had come through the door in the first place rushing back to me. “Wait!” I exclaimed, putting a hand on the door to keep it from closing.

Eda yanked it back open. “What?!” She snapped.

“Please,” I said, holding up my hands, “The monster that was chasing us… I’m worried it will hurt my mom. She doesn’t know. Please, you have to help me.”

Eda stared grumpily at me for a moment, then sighed. She stepped to the side, gesturing for me to enter the house. “Have a set on that couch over there. I’ll be with you in a minute.”

Relieved, I quickly did what I was told, flinching a little as she slammed the door closed behind me. I stumbled as Eda shoved past me, walking through a door on the far side of the room. I held my hands to my chest uncertainly as I looked around. It was, frankly, a mess. There was stuff everywhere, clearly nothing had been cleaned in a long time. Spotting the couch, I slowly made my way over, eyes the artifacts scattered on tables and walls; a curious mix of human objects and stuff that was decidedly not human.

“Who are _you?_ ” came a squeaky little voice, full of anger.

Glancing around, I spotted a little, grey dog-like creature standing in the doorway Eda had disappeared into. Except… he had a skull where his head should have been, with two horns jutting out the end of it, one broken off at the base. In his bony eye sockets were two burning yellow eyes. And, he was adorable.

“Ay! Pequeno bebe!” I ran towards him, scooping him up and cuddling him against my face. “You’re sooo cute!!” I squealed. “And so soft!”

He pushed against my face with his little paws, squeaking. “Stranger danger, I don’t know you! Let go!! EDDDAAA!” He wailed, struggling to escape.

I heard a huff as Eda came through the doorway, grabbing the creature by the collar and lifting him out of my arms. “Human, meet King. King, human.” She set him down on the ground.

“That’s King of Demons to you, human!” He hissed, pointing at me with a clawed paw.

I cleared my throat. “It’s Luz, actually. Luz Noceda.”

Eda waved a hand at me with a noncommittal sound. “Have a seat, human.” She said, gesturing to the couch.

Rolling my eyes, I did as she said, tapping my hands on my legs as I waited for her to say something.

A minute passed, then Eda sighed irritably. “Alright. You saved Owlbert and returned him to me, which means I owe you one.”

I opened my mouth to say something, only to stop when Eda raised a hand.

“ _However,_ I don’t care. So, if you want my help, you’re gonna need to do something for me first.”

“How it _that_ fair?” I protested indignantly.

She merely shrugged. “I didn’t say it was. You’re just going to have to deal with it.”

I huffed, crossing my arms and leaning back against the couch. “Fine! What do I need to do?”

A glint shone in Eda’s eyes. “Steal something for me.”

My jaw dropped. “ _Steal_ something?!” I squeaked. “But I’m not a criminal!”

She smirked, “Well I am! Deal with it. Do you want help or not?”

I hesitated, my brain scrambling to think of any other options. There were none. “…Fine,” I snapped.

“Perfect!” she exclaimed, “now…” raising her hands, she drew two spell circles, creating holographic illusions of a sword and a brick tower. “This,” she said, gesturing to the sword, “is the Sword of Speculo. I want it. I’ve tried taking it before but dropped it during my escape. Very embarrassing.” She stopped, shaking her head. “Anyways! I recently located it at this outpost, I’ve scouted it out already, I was just waiting on Owlbert so that I could get it. But now that you’re here, you can get it instead!” Smiling, she clapped her hands together, making the illusions disappear. “Now, any questions?”

I sat there, trying to get my thoughts in order. “Yes!” I exclaimed, “So many! How will I recognize the sword? Where is the outpost? Aren't there guards? Won’t I get caught? How-”

Eda raised her hands, effectively cutting off my ramble. “Kid! One at a time, please! You youths are so impatient.” She grumbled, “It’s a glass sword, one-of-a-kind. It’ll be easy to recognize. The outpost is on the edge of the Bat Queen’s forest. I’ll take you there, but then you’re on your own. There’s only ever one guard stationed there at a time; they have five-day shifts. The guard that's there now has been there for four days already, so she’ll be bored and not expecting company. It’ll be easy for you to slip in and out without her noticing.”

“Who’s the Bat Queen?” I asked curiously.

Eda huffed. “She’s a bat, she’s a queen. What’s so hard to understand! Keep up, human!” Shaking her head, Eda grabbed a wooden staff that was leaned against a wall. She turned to Owlbert, who was still perched on her shoulder. “Okay Owlbert, time to go.” Owlbert shook his head, making Eda frown. She turned to look at me, “What’s wrong with him?”

I cleared my throat. “Mami said he pulled a muscle in his wing.”

Nodding, Eda drew a circle, casting golden light over the little owl. Once it vanished from the air, Owlbert hooted happily, flapping his wings with a gleeful expression before hopping onto the staff, turning into wood.

“What’d you do to him?” I gasped.

Eda rolled her eyes at me impatiently. “He’s my palisman. Basically, the magical figurehead of my staff. No more questions, come outside.” With that, she turned and went out the door, ignoring the door-owl-tube, who tried to talk toher.

I quickly stood up and followed her, hearing the door close behind me with a thud. Nearby, Eda floated on her staff, clearly waiting for me.

“Come on human, hop on. I don’t have all night.”

“This is so cool…” I muttered to myself, carefully sitting down on the staff behind Eda. Suddenly, the staff shot into the air, causing me to cling to Eda with a yelp.

She laughed. “Now, don’t fall off! Cause I am _not_ coming back for you if you do.”

I looked down, my eyes wide with amazement. “This is awesome!” I yelled over the wind, causing Eda to glance back with a grin.

After a couple minutes, the staff slowed and descended into a clearing, hovering a few feet off the ground. I hopped off, looking back at Eda for directions.

Upon seeing my perplexed expression, Eda rolled her eyes. “Just walk in that direction,” she said, pointing into the trees, “You’ll see the tower eventually. I’ll be waiting here.”

I nodded, then turned and started walking into the trees.

“And kid?”

I looked back, noting Eda’s serious expression.

“Don’t get caught. I’m starting to like you, I think I’d be sad if you got blown to bits by the guard.”

I laughed, “gee, thanks! I won’t get caught.” Snapping Eda a pair of finger guns, I continued walking, muttering under my breath, “I hope.”

I walked through the dark forest, doing my best to not trip and fall. _I wish I had thought to grab a flashlight. Do they even have those here?_ I thought to myself distractedly, looking around for the outpost. Up ahead, the trees began to thin, giving way to an open meadow. I slowed, peaking over a bush cautiously, finally glimpsing the brick tower standing proudly at the center.

I gulped. “Alright, Luz. You can do this. For your mom. Just… don’t die! Simple, right?” I spoke to myself quietly, trying to shake away my sudden nerves.

Taking a deep breath, I slowly slunk across the meadow, crouching low to the ground and keeping my movements fluid. After a daunting couple minutes, I finally made it to the tower, pressing myself flat against it. I stood there for a moment, trying to get my heart rate under control. Once my heart wasn’t in danger of beating of my chest, I slowly crept along the tower, following the curve as I searched for a way in. A square of light on the ground exposed a window up ahead, and I carefully peeked in.

Inside was a quaint living space; a singular room with a small kitchen on one side, the rest of the small area taken up by a cot, a chair, and a lamp. On a wall hung a white cloak and a beaked silver helmet. And in the chair sat a witch, reading a book. _The guard,_ I realized. She was pale, with teal hair that went down to her chin, half of which was pulled back into a ponytail. From the window I could faint hints of brown as her roots struggled to grow in.

 _Ay dios mio,_ I thought wistfully, _she’s beautiful_. I ducked under the window and shook my head, giving myself a mental kick to focus.

Peeking back in, I caught sight of a thin ladder extending past the ceiling. “The sword must be up there,” I mumbled to myself. “Can’t get in through the front, she would see me for sure…”

Walking back along the tower, I carefully studied the bricks, grinning when I saw how uneven they were. Grabbing the wall, I pulled myself upwards with a faint groan at the effort.

“Okay, Luz. One limb at a time, don’t look down.”

After what felt like hours, I finally made it to the top, heaving myself onto the rampart. I lay there for a moment, catching my breath and giving my screaming muscles a break. With a dim sigh, I stood up, my legs trembling with exhaustion. Sneaking over to the ladder, I peered down. Below me lay the second floor, weapons gleaming on the circular walls.

 _This must be it_ , I thought.

I maneuvered my way down the ladder, taking care to stay silent. After a couple seconds, I stepped down onto the landing, already scanning the walls for a glass sword. Below me, the witch was humming softly. _There!_ It was on the far wall, shining dimly in the low light. Quietly, I tiptoed over and took it down, wincing as it scraped against the wall noisily. The humming stopped. Nervous sweat trickled down my head as I struggled to climb the ladder one-handed, my other hand grasping the hilt of the sword. I made it to the top, staggering a bit as I got off the ladder.

I peered back down the ladder, just in time to see the witch appear at the bottom. Her eyes widened at the sight of me, astonished. I froze, unsure of what to do as I made eye contact with her. After a moment, her gaze dropped to the sword in my hand, and a scowl overtook her features. Reaching up a hand, she drew a spell circle, a purple fireball emerging from it and shooting towards me. With a yelp, I sprang backwards, running as I shoved the sword through a beltloop on my jeans. Vaulting over the edge, I made it down the tower in record time as I half-climbed, half-slid down. Falling a little at the end, I landed heavily on my feet, jarring my skeleton until my teeth raddled. Without pausing to catch my breath, I took off at a run for the forest, glancing back to see the witch at the top of the tower, casting more circles as she shouted profanities at my retreating form. I zigzagged my way across the meadow, narrowly dodging fireballs all the while.

Finally, I made it to the forest, not stopping my headlong pace until I burst into the clearing where Eda was waiting.

She glanced towards me as I crashed through the bushes. “You got it? Good job, kid. Let’s go," she said, gesturing for me to hurry.

I climbed onto the staff behind her as she gave Owlbert a tap, sending us flying back through the skies once again.

The Owl House came into view after a minute, Eda landing gently by the front door. I hopped off, my knees nearly buckling under me as I followed Eda through the door. I closed the door behind me, turn to see Eda standing in front of me, expectantly holding out a hand.

“Well, kid?” she said, “hand it over.”

I wrestled the sword out of my beltloop, finally succeeding and passing it to Eda before walking past her and collapsing on the couch. “Mierda… I haven’t run this much in _years_ ,” I groaned, rubbing my aching legs. “What time is it, anyways?”

Eda looked up from studying the sword, “a little after three AM, I believe.”

“Okay,” I said, slapping my face lightly in an attempt to wake myself up. “Mami gets home around five, so we have two hours to kill the monster. Do you have a plan?”

“Well,” Eda began, leaning the sword against the wall before taking a seat in a chair near me. “In order to kill it without dying, we need to know exactly what we’re dealing with.” She rubbed a feathered arm, deep in thought. “KING!” she yelled, making me jump in surprise, “Get down here!”

There was a thundering of footsteps, and King burst into the room. “What do you want?” He cried, “I was in the middle of a very important nap!”

Rolling her eyes with a scoff, Eda turned to me. “Describe the creature to him. He might have an idea on what it is.”

King came to sit beside me, looking at me with wide eyes. “Well?” He squeaked eagerly, his anger long forgotten, “Go on!”

Eyeing him a little dubiously, I began describing the encounter. After I ended on the part where I hit it across the face I went quiet, waiting for his input.

King tapped his skull, humming slightly. After a minute, he spoke. “That sounds like a Cutis Graboto, a mid-class demon. They’re pretty rare. I wonder how one made it into the human realm…” His eyes narrowed, focusing on me suspiciously. 

I shrugged, “I have no clue. How do we kill it?”

“Hmm. Fire! All shape-changers are vulnerable to it, they have an extremely flammable chemical in their skin that explodes when it touches fire. It’s nasty; blood and guts go flying everywhere!” He said, letting out a little cackle.

I felt sick. “Okaaay, that’s… lovely. So, how do we kill it _without dying_?”

Eda spoke up. “Oh, that’s easy! Magic doesn’t work in the human realm, so we’ll use you as bait to lead it through the portal, ‘cause it hates you so much, then I’ll cast a barrier spell around it and light it up!”

I groaned, standing up. “I don’t like it, but I also don’t have a better idea!” After popping my back, wincing as it spasmed, I tied my flannel around my waist and started towards the door. “Let’s just get this over with.”

Eda chuckled, standing up and ruffling my hair as I passed. “I like your enthusiasm kid!”

I smiled at her wearily, rubbing my eyes and stifling a yawn. “I can’t wait to go to sleep,” I muttered, opening the door and walking outside, Eda following close behind.

“Hooty!” Eda snapped as she closed the door.

“Yessssss?” said the door owl, spinning in a circle.

“The kid and I are going out, guard the house. Don’t let anyone in, and don’t let King out,” Eda ordered. She turned to me, gesturing for me to follow her before walking down a small path beside the house, following it to a flat section of ground before stopping.

“Okay kid, here will do. You still have the key, right?”

I nodded mutely, pulling the key from my pocket and handing it to her.

Taking it, she pressed the eye, watching impatiently as the key transformed into a door, the yellow eye blinking slowly at us before opening.

Eda turned to me, eyes hard. “Okay. I’ll be waiting here. Good luck, be careful, and don’t get killed!”

With that encouraging sentiment, she grabbed my arm and threw me through the door. I landed gracefully on my face in front of the ruined house, exhaling sharply in pain. “Oww…”

I heaved myself to my feet, dreading what was to come. Wringing my hands together nervously, I glanced uneasily around the dark wilderness, searching for any sign of the monster. “Okay,” I muttered lowly to myself, “If I were a terrifying demon with a taste for little owls and hapless queers… where would I be?” I groaned, “Probably at my house.”

With a heavy sigh, I set off towards my house. Through the dark woods. Without a light. Alone. _This is why I’d be the first to die in horror movies_ , I complained silently, _I’m stupid enough to act as monster bait._ Still, I trudged on, jumping anxiously at every creak and moan. After what felt like hours, though it was probably only fifteen minutes, I finally caught a glimpse of my house through the trees. Relief swept through me. “I thought I’d be wandering this forest forever!” I exclaimed in a quiet whisper. Slowing to a mere crawl, I cautiously exited the trees, my eyes flitting from shadow to shadow as I tried to spot the beast.

A snarl split the air, and a dark shape came flying at me.

“Mierda!” I yelped, ducking on instinct and watching it go sailing overhead, narrowly missing me. Spinning, I took off at a run back into the woods. Adrenaline rushed through me; my once fatigued legs were now steady in my fear. Behind me, there was a roar as the demon regained its balance and took off in pursuit.

Tears began to trail down my face. “Fuck fuck fuck fuck fu-” my foot caught on a root, and I went flying, inhaling sharply in pain as a rock dug itself into my knee. With no time to lose, I scrambled up again and resumed my headlong flight, cringing as the demon’s panting breath got louder and louder, harmonized by its thunderous footfalls. There was a heavier step, and then another. Then silence.

My heart flew to my throat; panic seeping into the void it left behind. I threw myself onto the forest floor, the fall jarring me out of my shock as the demon sailed overhead, growling as it attempted to turn midair before landing heavily on its side with a massive _floomp_. I jumped to my feet, running past it before it could recover, though it still swiped a clawed hand at me with a snarl. I yelped, skirting further away from it without slowing down.

“Come on, come on!” I panted, “where’s that maldito house?!” I could hear the demon scrambling to its feet behind me, giving chase once again. Dimly, I registered a gap in the trees, a bright light shining beyond it. I gasped, _there!_

Altering my course, I broke free of the constraining trees, pushing my legs to move faster as the door came into view. The monster was at my heels again, its rasping breath echoing through the fog in my mind. A whimper rose in my throat, though I was breathing too hard for it to escape.

A hundred feet. Seventy. I could almost feel its teeth digging through my skin.

Fifty. Thirty. Its breath was hot on my neck.

Ten. The demon leapt forward.

Zero. I lunged through the door, throwing myself desperately to the side as the beast came roaring through after me. I lay on the cold ground, my chest heaving as I struggled to draw in enough air to satisfy my burning lungs.

I turned my head, shrieking in terror as I saw the demon’s face only a few inches from mine. Its expression was contorted with hate, its long rows of gleaming teeth bared into a sick parody of a grin as bloody spittle trailed from its maw. Between us was a golden field; barring it from mauling me as it so clearly wanted to.

“It’s okay, Luz. You did good. You’re safe.”

Flinching at the sudden voice, I turned my head sharply, relaxing when I saw the Owl Lady standing beside me, an emotion suspiciously akin to concern on her face. I laid my head on the ground, groaning through my labored breathing.

“Remind me…” I stopped, panting. “Remind me to never do that again.” Eda nodded solemnly, then held out a hand. Grasping it weakly, I let her pull me upright.

“Now,” she cackled menacingly, rubbing her hands together gleefully, “Ready to watch this sucker explode?”

“Please.”

With a look of delight, Eda drew a circle, then pointed a finger at the demon. A stream of golden fire poured out of the sky; the beast shrieking in pain as it was submerged. The cry grew louder and louder, making us wince and cover our ears. Then, for one blissful second, it stopped.

_KA-BOOOM!!_

We both flinched, heads tilting upwards to watch the billowing mushroom cloud waft into the lightening sky. After a minute, the smoke cleared, revealing nothing left of the demon but a smoking crater.

I turned, looking at Eda with vision flecked with black. “Eda…?” I murmured shakily. “I don’t feel so good. My eyes rolled back into my head, and I collapsed, succumbing to blissful unconsciousness.

I woke slowly, my mind sluggish and my body screaming its hatred of me. I groaned, reaching up a hand to rub my eyes as I tried to remember what happened. I cracked opened my eyes, my vision blurry as light streamed into view. I blinked a couple times, noticing a couple details in tandem. One: I was lying on a floor that was decidedly _not_ my room. And two: I wasn’t alone. In a chair nearby sat the Owl Lady, watching me expectantly. That opened the floodgates, and memories from the previous night came rushing back into my mind, making me sit upright in a panic.

“Oh mierda!” I cursed, “What time is it!? Mami must be worried sick!” I launched myself of the floor, gasping as my muscles convulsed and gave out, making me fall back to the floor with a heavy _thunk_.

“Hey! Just take it easy, kid. You had one hell of a night.” Eda said, getting up and carefully pulling me to my feet, hanging on until I got my balance. “It’s only eight AM, I was expecting you to sleep for a lot longer.”

I sucked in a breath, looking at her with pleading eyes. “Please… I have to get home.”

Eda hesitated, then nodded. “Alright, fine. I’ll walk you to your house. Wouldn’t want you to get eaten on the way there.” She chuckled as she walked out of the room, motioning for me to follow. I staggered after her, my legs stiff and trembling. We went down a set of stairs and through another door, ending up in the main room.

Eda drew the key from her pocket, pressed the eye, and waited for the door to unfold, tapping her foot impatiently. As soon as it formed, she tugged down the door handle and threw the door open, marching through without hesitation. I quickly followed, not wanting to lose her. Emerging on the other side, I glimpsed Eda staring at the ruined house before turning to me with a grin.

"C'mon kid! Let’s get this over with.” She gestured for me to lead, which I did slowly, my legs protesting every step.

After a couple minutes of silence, Eda turned, looking down at me. “So… I was thinking.” She started, scratching her head with a feathered hand. “It was entertaining having you around last night, I had more fun than I’ve had in ages. I wouldn’t mind if you stuck around.”

I came to a stop, my jaw dropping. “Are you saying you’ll teach me magic?” Excitement began to build in me, aching limbs forgotten.

She hesitated, then threw up her hands. “Yes, fine! I’ll try to teach you. Magic _and_ criminal acts. Can’t have any protégé of mine being a saint… What do you say?”

“Ay dios mio, yes!!” I threw my arms around her in a hug, wincing slightly at the resulting pain in my arms.

She growled, “ugh, stop that! Are you going rabid? What are you doing?” Shoving me away, she kept walking with a huff.

Uncaring, I bounced after her, too excited to walk normally. _But my mom…_ I thought with a frown. _She’ll understand. She has to._

We continued on in silence, eventually reaching the edge of the trees. Eda stopped, looking at me. “Alright kid, go talk to your mom. I’ll be waiting here, so don’t take too long.”

Nodding, I walked down the dark street, reaching my house and opening the door. “Mami?” I called tentatively. “Are you awake?”

I heard a chair scrape back, and suddenly my mom came rushing towards me, hugging me tightly. “Where were you carino?! I was so worried!” I hugged her back, mumbling into her shirt.

“Mami, can we talk?”

A while later, I finished telling her all that had happened last night, ending on Eda’s offer. I sat there, tapping my knees as I anxiously awaited her response. Her eyebrows were furrowed in thought, and her expression was torn. Mentally, I prepared my arguments to convince her.

“Alright, mija. You can stay there.”

“But Mami! I- What?” I was floored, her response was completely unexpected. “I can…?” I whispered disbelievingly, staring at her in shock.

She sighed heavily, reaching up and rubbing her eyes. “Luz, from what you told me, you were happier there in one night than you’ve been in four years… Despite nearly getting yourself killed several times,” she grumbled. “I only want what’s best for you, and I am confident that you know what that is. Just… please visit, okay? I can’t lose you, carino.”

I sat down next to her, feeling as if my heart was tearing in two. “Of course I will, Mami! I’ll stop by every week. You’ll never lose me. Te quiero mas que a nada.”

She sniffled, smiling at me. “Yo te quiero mas.” Now, go pack. Don’t keep Eda waiting.”

I gave her a kiss on the cheek, then got up and ran to my room, grabbing a duffel bag and throwing everything I might need and then some into it. Darting back, I said goodbye to my mom, sharing a heartfelt hug before closing the door and walking back to Eda, who grinned when she saw me.

“About time, kiddo! Now, let’s go get you settled in.”

The walk back to the ruined house was filled with chatter as I asked question after question, each met with a tired, exasperated response from Eda. Back through the door we went, emerging into the Owl House. Eda turned to me with a smile.

“Welcome home, Luz.”


	3. Welcome to the Isles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, it was hard to write for some reason. I probably spent as much time staring blankly at the keyboard as I did writing lol.

I woke slowly, stretching myself out and shivering lightly as a wave of cold air hit me. _Where… blanket?_ I thought groggily. Sitting up, I rubbed my eyes, blinking blearily as I patted my hands along the frigid floor, searching for my missing blanket. After a moment, my hand hit something warm and fuzzy, and I looked up to see King glaring down at me, holding my blanket.

“King…?” I said, my voice husky with sleep. “Is something wrong? What’re you doing with my blanket?” The floor was hard beneath me, making me wince in discomfort as I shifted.

“Human!” He squeaked. “Er… Luz, I mean.” His glare softened, “Eda’s busy, and I’m hungry! Make me something!”

I took a moment to register what he said, my mind struggling to wake up. “Is it morning already?”

“What? No!” He said, glare returning. “It’s just after three. You’ve been asleep for _hours_. Make me dinner!”

I groaned, laying back down and throwing an arm over my eyes to block out the light. “King, I had a very long, hard night. Can you please let me sleep?” I heard him shuffling and flinched when something smacked my arm. I moved it off my face, glaring at the demon as annoyance bubbled up in me. “Hey! Stop that. Can you go away?”

Anger entered his little voice. “No! I’m hungry! Feed me! You can sleep after.”

I sat up, throwing my hands in the air in surrender. “Fine!" I snapped, "I’ll be down in a minute.”

He tossed the blanket on my head with a _weh!_ before running out of my room and pounding down the stairs.

Rolling my eyes, I threw the blanket off my head and stood up shakily. Across the room was a gilded mirror, the only thing in the room not covered in dust and cobwebs. I stared at my reflection, which stared right back. I was filthy; my previously white shirt was brown with dirt, the flannel around my waist likewise coated. My jeans had a long tear at the knee, the skin beneath bruised and bloodied from my fall. I picked rocks out of the gash, hissing in pain. Looking up, I groaned when I saw my face, which was streaked with dirt and blood. My hair wasn’t any better. I ran a hand through it, trying to fluff up the sweat-stained spikes, grimacing as they refused to comply.

Leaving my room, I looked side to side. To my right lay the staircase, and to my left, a dark hallway with no windows to illuminate it. I set off down the latter, going from door to door until I found the bathroom. Entering, I glanced around, taking in the small space. There wasn’t much to it; half the room was taken up by a shower, with a toilet and sink crammed in the rest. Spying a basket against a wall, I opened it, a little wary of what I might find. I sighed in relief when I saw it was just towels, pulling out the cleanest looking one and hanging it on a hook by the shower. Turning on the water, I quickly undressed before stepping in, letting out a blissful sigh as warm water hit my sore body. My eyes unfocused and my mind wandered as I began to relax.

_BANG!_

I jumped, startled out of my head. “Ah! What?!”

King’s angry squeaking floated through the door. “Luuuz! Hurry up, I’m _hungry_!”

I cleared my throat, quickly washing my hair as I called back, “Sorry, I’ll be out in a minute!”

“That’s what you said last time…” came the grumbling response.

I winced, choosing not to answer as I focused on getting clean. A minute or two later, I reluctantly stepped out of the shower, throwing the towel around my body and picking up my dirty clothes before heading back to my room, closing the door behind me. Tossing the clothes into a corner, I headed over to my bag, pulling out a bra and underwear, as well as a pair of dark purple sweatpants and a navy t-shirt. After pulling them on, I exited my room and thumped down the stairs, ruffling my hair with my hands as I tried not to fall.

Entering the living room, my eyes went to King, who was sitting at the table with his little arms crossed, his face screwed up in a pout.

“Sorry, King!” I said to him, making him glance up. I moved into the kitchen opening the cupboards to see what I could find. “What do you want for dinner?”

“You better be!” he snapped. After a moment, the pout dropped off his face and eagerness took its place. “I want toast!”

Nodding, I moved around the kitchen area, eventually managing to find both the bread and butter. My eyebrows furrowed, and I turned to King, who was watching me expectantly. “Do you have a toaster?”

He squinted. “A what?”

“It’s a… never mind.” I sighed, turning back around. “I’ll just do it on the stove. How many pieces do you want?”

“Hmmm,” he tapped his snout. “Two!”

Making a sound of affirmation, I dug through the cabinets for a skillet, finally pulling one out and setting it down on the stove. Moving to ignite it, I hesitated. “King?”

“Weh?”

“There aren’t any dials. How do I turn it on?”

“Oh! Um, magic,” he said, snapping his claws together. Hopping off the chair, he ran up the stairs, wailing, “EDDDAAAA!!!”

A minute later he appeared, dragging Eda in tow. She wore a cranky expression and was holding the sword I had stolen for her. Without looking at me, she drew a small circle in the air, muttering all the while about obnoxious demons. The burner behind me lit with a sudden _whoomph_ , making me jump and turn back around. I quickly smeared some butter on the pan before placing down the two slices of bread. The fire Eda had conjured was hot, it only took a moment for the bread to brown. Grabbing a plate, I moved the toast onto it, hissing in pain at the heat. I placed it down in front of King, who was sitting at the table once again.

“There you go,” I said, shaking out my burned hand, “Toast del King.”

“Thanks!” he replied, cramming the first slice into his mouth. “Isht goob,” he mumbled through the bread, spewing crumbs everywhere.

I chuckled, patting his head before walking over to Eda, who stood frowning by the couch as she eyed the walls, still holding the sword. “Hey Eda, I’m done with the stove, how do I extinguish it?

A few seconds went by without a response.

“Eda…?” I prompted.

She turned. “What? Oh, right.” She snapped her fingers, causing the flame to die with a low hiss.

I craned my head, trying to determine what she was looking at. “Sooo, what are you doing?”

She held the sword out to me distractedly. “Trying to find a place for this… make yourself useful and hold this to that empty spot over there,” she said, gesturing vaguely with her free hand.

Studying the direction she pointed, I noticed a bare spot on the otherwise packed walls. I walked over, standing on my tiptoes as I stretched to hold the sword up against the wall, my tired arms shaking with the effort. “Here?” I asked in a strained voice.

“Yes, perfect! Now, just hold it still for a sec.”

I bit back a groan, leaning my head against the wall as I focused on not dropping the very sharp sword on my neck.

“Alright, kid. It’s up, you can let go.”

I gently lowered my hands, half expecting the sword to follow. When it didn’t, I stepped back towards Eda, lowering my arms in relief. Crossing my arms, I backed up to stand beside her and looked up at the sword, now held up by a thin, golden spell. “Why did you want it, anyways?” I asked curiously, turning my head to gaze at the feathery witch.

She grinned, raising a hand and drawing a spell circle, making a sphere of pale, yellow light appear in front of her. “Watch.”

She pointed her finger at the sword, making the light whiz towards it, coming to a stop just in front of it and hovering. My breath caught in my throat as the light refracted off the glass, becoming a swirling blaze of colors that danced beneath the sword’s surface and flew across the room, illuminating the space with gently swaying patterns of light.

“Oh…” was all I could say as I slowly turned a circle, eyes darting around the room in awe. A laugh rose in me, and I spun to face the Owl Lady, whose pupils were dilated as they followed the twirling lights, her mouth hung up in awe. “This is amazing!” I crowed. “Totally worth almost dying for.” Grinning widely, I focused my attention back on the lights, marveling in their beauty.

Suddenly, they disappeared. Eda and I turned as one, looking for the cause. King stood glaring at us beneath the sword, holding a long stick in his paws. “I’m trying to nap,” he complained, “and I can’t do it with that bright light in here.” Throwing the stick on the ground with a _weh_ , he retreated to a windowsill, climbing up and curling up with his back to us.

I shook my head at him, looking at Eda with a smile. “Well, it was nice while it lasted.”

She nodded with a sigh, turning and walking to the front door. “I need to get some stuff from the market before it closes, I’ll be back in a couple hours. Luz, clean the house for me while I’m gone.”

My eyes widened, protests instantly springing to my lips. “Wait, what? But I just got here today! None of this,” I gestured to the mess around me, “is from me. Why do I have to clean it?”

Eda rolled her eyes in response and summoned a pile of cleaning supplies. “Because I said so. Now, get to it!” With that, she grabbed her staff and walked out the door, slamming it shut behind her.

“Ha! You have to clean!” came King’s singsong voice from the window. I turned to glare at the smug demon, who waited until I make eye contact with him before reaching out and knocking a plant off the windowsill. He glanced down at the pot on the floor, then back up at me with an innocent expression on his face. “Oops! My mistake. Guess you have to clean that up now too!” Before I could come up with a retort, he jumped off the window and ran upstairs, cackling all the while.

“Ohhh,” I growled under my breath, “ese demonio estuipdo.” Shaking my head, I make my way over to the pile Eda had left, sorting through it to see what I could use. Picking up a box, I turned it over to read the fading label: _Max’s Bottomless Trash Bags! For all your witch needs. Warning: change biweekly to avoid smells._

Shrugging, I opened the box and unraveled a bag, throwing the box over my shoulder as I made my way towards the nearest trash pile. Stooping down, I begun to work, grabbing handfuls of mystery items and shoving them into the bag, flinching in disgust at the unfamiliar textures. Slowly, I worked my way across the room, sweating a bit with the effort.

After an hour, I was finally done. I stood with a low groan, my back tight after being stooped over for so long. I glanced down, noticing that the bag in my hand looked like it was still empty. Curious, I lifted it to my face and poked my head inside, immediately gagging at the horridly rancid smell. Struggling to not throw up, I shoved the bag away, taking deep breaths to stabilize my rebelling stomach. A minute passed until I felt well enough to try again, this time plugging my nose with my free hand before attempting it. I took a deep breath and held it before cautiously looking inside, fighting back an amazed gasp.

The things I had picked up _were_ in the bag, just shrunken down into miniature versions of themselves, so small I couldn’t differentiate one oddly shaped blob from another. I moved the bag away, letting out my breath as a stupid grin lit up my face. “Magic is so cool…” I murmured to myself.

Shaking myself out of my stupor, I quickly tied off the bag and moved towards the front door, opening it and chucking the bag outside. I stood there for a moment, smiling softly at the landscape; the forested hills lit orange by the nearly setting sun.

“Hiya Luz!”

“Gah!” I screamed, jumping to the side and slamming into the door frame with a dull _thud_ , causing me to lose my balance and fall forward. Instinctively throwing my arms out, I hit the ground hard, rolling onto my back as I scrambled away from the voice. Glancing around frantically, I froze, making eye contact with the owl tube on the door.

It opened its beak, the irritating voice starting again. “Geez, no need for that! It’s just me, your old pal Hooty, hoot hoot!”

I let out a peeved breath before standing warily. “Hi… Hooty. Sorry,” I apologized, “I forgot all about you.” I wrung my hands awkwardly, not knowing what to say to this strange bird.

“That’s okay! It happens allllll the time. Why, just the other day Eda-” Nodding, I tuned him out, slinking my way back inside and closing the door. I leaned against it with a sigh, sliding down until I was sitting on the floor. Behind me, I could hear Hooty still chattering to himself.

I turned my head, eyeing the cleaning supplies next to me. “Just get it over with, Noceda, then you can go back to sleep,” I muttered to myself, reaching out and grabbing a broom before heaving myself upright with a huff. I started sweeping, wrinkling my nose at the dust that rose into the air. Pulling up my shirt, I tucked the collar over my nose as an impromptu mask.

I made quick work of sweeping, dumping the resulting pile into another trash bag, not wanting to have to talk to Hooty again. Broom and bag in hand, I made my way upstairs, pausing every step to sweep. Entering my room, I used the broom handle to clear away the cobwebs in the corners, dropping the sticky bundle in the bag once I finished. There wasn’t anything piled on the floor up here, so I picked up my bedding and swept, quickly finishing and moving to the hallway and bathroom, where I repeated the process.

By the time I entered Eda’s room, I was exhausted and ready to be done. I stopped just past the threshold, blinking slowly. “This is… not what I expected,” I muttered, scanning the dimly lit room. For a lady with so much clutter downstairs, her room was surprisingly empty, except for the huge bird nest in the middle of it. Dropping the bag, I made my way over to it, curiously looking over the edge. It was about ten feet in diameter and three feet deep, with random stuff scattered inside it. I squinted, picking up a nearly intact skeleton near me. “Oh lovely,” I said to myself, placing it in the trash bag with a shudder. “Wonder what that was.”

Grumbling, I climbed into the nest, getting to work on throwing away anything resembling garbage. Besides the skeletons, molted feathers, and grey spheres that look suspiciously like owl pellets, Eda did have some nice things in her nest. Peeking through the layered branches were bright, shining objects; most appearing to be minerals or precious metals. All of which would probably make me a fortune back on Earth. I shook my head at the thought, finishing cleaning up and moving to leave the nest. Too busy in my own head, I forgot to watch where I was going, and my foot got hooked on a branch, making me stumble and fall with a yelp.

“Owwww,” I groaned, my face buried against the nest. “Surprisingly comfortable, though,” I added in a slightly brighter voice. I pushed myself up, sitting on folded knees as I rubbed my head. Feeling something cold against my chest, I looked down, letting out a sound of disgust when I noticed there was a smear of big, black goo stuck to my shirt.

“What _is_ this?” I said, aghast. Reaching up a hand, I poked it cautiously. It was cool and a little moist, squishing easily beneath my finger. Suddenly it started to tremble, making me draw my finger back with a sharp inhale of shock. It slid off my shirt, flowing like water into my lap, where it condensed into a round blob. A little sphere poked out of the main mass, forming something akin to a head as it spun around.

“Awww,” I cooed, “you’re pretty cute, senor esfera!” Cupping my hands, I held them out in front of the blob. It seemed to hesitant, then rolled on, tickling my palms and making me laugh. Carefully, I stood and climbed out of the nest, leaving Eda’s room and heading down the stairs. “King, you in here?” I called out.

“On the couch…” came his sleepy reply.

Spinning on my heel, I walked over to him, keeping my strides smooth for my passenger, who jiggled slightly with my every step. Kneeling in front of the couch, I held my hands out towards King, who was curled up napping. “King!” I exclaimed, “look what I found!”

“Luz, I am _sleeping_ ,” he growled, cracking open an eye to glare at me. His eye quickly focused on the thing in my hands instead, the other opening to stare at the blob curiously. “Whoa… Where did you find that thing?”

“In Eda’s nest, I tripped and landed on it. What is it?”

He blinked, tilting his head. “I have no clue; it doesn’t look like any demon or monster I’ve ever heard of.”

The blob wiggled a bit, then leaped out of my hands, landing on the floor and rolling around in circles, each little lap enunciated with a hop.

King wiggled off the couch, putting his head down by the floor to stare at it in wonder. “Hmm,” he pondered, “there are no visible changes in uniformity, which is unusual. It’s perfectly round, but it looks like it can change the density of its body.” He reached out his paws, catching the creature between them and bringing it to a sudden halt. Slowly, he tightened his paws around it, making it elongate and squish through King’s claws. He lifted it up, only for it to pour out through the gaps in his fingers, forming a singular mass once it hit the floor.

I furrowed my eyebrows and studied it for a moment, then chimed in to his musings. “Given how it can divide itself while still retaining full function, it must be entirely one substance: something that can both send and receive neural signals. That’s so cool!”

King looked at me in surprise. “Huh. Not bad, human. You’re a lot smart than you look!”

I huffed, narrowing my eyes at him before shrugging. “I took an advanced biology class in school. I’m interested in that stuff.”

King distractedly waved a paw at me, turning back to watch as the blob continued rolling in circles.

I shook my head at the demon before standing up, an idea popping into my head. “I’ll be right back,” I told him, walking towards the stairs. “I’m gonna go grab my phone so I can send a picture to my Mami!” Forgetting to watch where I was going, I suddenly felt something squish under my foot, making me slip and fall on my face.

I rolled onto my back with a groan, bringing up my hands and rubbing my aching head. I could hear King cackling maniacally in the background. I lifted up my leg, angling my foot towards my face to see what I stepped on. It was the blob. Inhaling sharply, I lifted a hand and peeled it off my foot, shuddering at the weird sensation.

“Sorry, little buddy,” I apologized, “I didn’t see you there.” I set it gently on the floor, frowning when it remained motionless.

King poked it with a claw. “I think you killed it! Nice going, klutz!”

Tears sprung to my eyes. “I didn’t mean to!" I whined regretfully, "it was just so small; I didn’t see it!”

He snorted in derision. “Yeah right! You probably did it on pur- Hey, look! It’s moving!”

I looked back at the creature, which was trembling as its body slowly elongated, becoming round on the two ends as the connection began to sever. There were now _two_ little blobs, each moving independently of the other. I blinked slowly in shock. “Did it just… multiple through death?”

King shrugged, “Looks like it!”

I shook my head in wonderment, standing up carefully. “Alrightly then. I’ll be right back,” I said, exiting the room and climbing up the stairs, turning sharply at the top to enter my room. “Now,” I murmured to myself, “Where did I leave my phone?” I stood there for a minute, scanning the room as I tried to remember where I had put it. Finally, I spotted it sticking out from under my bedroll, exclaiming, “there it is!”

Back down the stairs I went, only to stop in my tracks in the doorway, staring in surprise and disbelief at the scene before me. “King! What did you do?!”

The demon in question looked at me smugly, surrounded by little, bouncing blobs. “I raised an army, of course! They will strike fear into my enemies’ hearts!”

The blobs began to move erratically, zipping towards one another in a manic dance. They piled on top of one another, forming a singular, beaded mass. They moved in sync, flowing from one shape to the next before stopping on a cylindrical one. A mouth-like depression formed on the side of the curve, turning to face King as long, sharp-looking spikes emerged around the rim.

I moved towards him, a bad feeling rising in me. “King…” I asked cautiously, “what are they doing?”

He looked up at me, pride lighting up his eyes. “Getting ready to fight for me, of course!” He turned back to the creature, pointing an arm towards the front door. “Now go! Cause chaos and ruin!”

It turned towards the door, then back to King. The indentation in it widened, and it lunged towards King, who stood frozen in shock.

“Mierda!” I cursed, quickly reaching down and grabbing King before jumping out of the way. “I don’t think it liked you killing it so much!” I told King, who glared up at me.

“Oh, you think!?” He squeaked.

The blob went rolling past, skidding a bit as it reoriented itself for another charge. I shifted King, freeing an arm as I looked around, hoping to spot some mystical weapon. My eyes landed on the Sword of Speculo, sending me running across the room to grab it.

I yanked it down, breaking Eda’s magical restraints with a _snap_! Cradling King in one arm and hefting the sword in the other, I turned to face the angry mass rolling towards me. Swinging desperately, I hit it across the mouth with the flat of the blade, sending it flying and shattering the spikes, which turned to goop as the fragments hit the floor before rolling back to join the mass.

“King?!” I called in distress, “what do I do?!”

The demon in my arm looked up at me, panic clear in his wide eyes. “I-I don’t know!” He stammered. “I’ve heard of anything like this thing!”

I grimaced, preparing myself as it came charging back. As I swung, light reflected off the sword, searing through the blob with a loud hiss. I froze instantly, my jaw dropping as I stared at the now cowering thing.

King grabbed my shirt and yanked, grabbing my attention as he looked up at me. “Whatever you just did, do it again!”

Nodding, I maneuvered myself until I stood opposite of the window, the blob shivering in between. Angling the sword, I caught the fading sunlight on the blade, manipulating it until the refracted light pointed straight through the creature. It shook wildly, a keening note rising from it as its insides disintegrated, crumbling steadily into a fine, black powder. Its body contracted around the hole in its center, trying in vain to fill it. The death cry went shrill as the light ate its way through, rapidly decreasing in volume as it fell apart.

After a minute, it was gone; totally reduced to black dust. I stood still, immobile in my shock. I cleared my throat, shaking my head lightly as I set King down on the floor before moving to the table, placing the sword on it and sitting down heavily. Leaning my elbows on the table, I put my head in my hands, taking a deep breath before muttering to myself. “Why is there always something here that’s trying to kill me?”

King answered in a bright voice. “That’s the Boiling Isles for you. I almost got eaten four different times last week!”

I lifted my head, turning to stare at the demon. He was squatting next to the blob’s remains, poking a claw into the pile. Curiously, he bought a pinch of it up to his nose-holes, sniffing it. Immediately, he began to sneeze, the disturbance sending powder flying across the room every which way. He looked at me, eyes wide. “Oops?”

I stared at the mess mournfully. “I’ll go get the broom,” I said with a sigh, jogging upstairs to grab it and the bag. I came down just in time to see the door slam open, Eda marching through with a scowl as she surveyed the filthy floor.

“I thought I told you to _clean_ , not make it dirtier!” She exclaimed, looking at me. “What did you two do in here?!”

I blinked, unsure of what to say. I looked at King, then back at Eda. “I-”

She stopped me with a wave, floating the sword back into its place on the wall. “Never mind, I don’t care. Just sweep it up and meet me in your room. I got stuff for you.”

“Aww!” I said with a grin. “Eda! You care about me!”

“Nonsense!” she snapped, shoving past me to go up the stairs, muttering, “I’ve just been meaning to do something with that room for a while.”

Still smiling, I made quick work of sweeping up, dumping the gathered powder in the trash bag before tying it off and chucking it outside. Spinning on my heel, I ran up the stairs and into my room, eager to see the changes.

I stopped in the doorway, my excitement rising as I looked around. The small, previously empty room now held a bed and a dresser. The former was fully equipped with sheets, blankets, two pillows, and a narrow nightstand. I turned to Eda, who stood off to the side grinning at my reaction.

“Eda… this is amazing! Thank you!” I exclaimed to the witch, who chuckled.

“You’re welcome kid.” She moved past me to leave the room, adding, “Now, get to sleep! Busy day tomorrow.”

I nodded, closing the door behind her. Moving to the bed, I looked down to see King already curled up on a pillow. Smiling, I climbed in and got comfortable, my eyes drifted closed as I fell asleep.


	4. A Lesson in Witchery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate writing dialogue so much.

It was my first full day in the Boiling Isles, and I was ready for it. After an early morning visit with my mom, I stood back in my room in the Owl House, humming softly as I organized my stuff. King lay on the bed asleep, legs twitching as he dreamt. I smiled at him fondly, contentment sweeping through me. _This is much nicer than laying around all day back home,_ I thought as I finished folding clothing into the dresser, _and I didn’t even have to get a job!_

Moving to the door, I quietly opened it and stepped into the hallway, taking care to avoid waking the slumbering demon. Down the stairs I went, stumbling a bit at the bottom as I turned into the main room. I looked around, spotting Eda curled up on the couch, a mug clenched in her feathered hands and a sleepy expression on her face.

“Goood morning, Eda!” I chirped, walking over and plopping down beside her.

She scowled, turning to glare at me. “No,” was all she said, removing one hand from her mug to draw a spell circle.

My eyes widened, but before I could run the couch dematerialized beneath me, sending me sprawling to the floor with a yelp. I laid there for a moment, my brain trying to catch up with what happened. “Oww…” I groaned. I began to slowly heave myself upright, only to slam my head against the couch as it reappeared. 

“Mierda!” I cursed, laying back down and rubbing my aching head. “Eda! Let me up!” I shoved my thighs into the underside of the couch, trying in vain to lift it off me. I quickly gave up, my legs protesting the abuse. Muttering more curses, I wiggled my body, slowly worming my way out of the tight space. After a few tense minutes, I finally escaped, standing up stiffly and glaring at the indifferent witch, who didn’t even bother to look at me as she took a long sip from her mug.

I rolled my eyes with a huff, turning to leave the room. Behind me, Eda cleared her throat.

“You should probably get ready. We need to leave in ten minutes.”

I looked back, frowning perplexedly. “We’re going somewhere?”

“Yep,” she said, “I work a stand in the market. The earlier we get there, the more customers we have to scam! So go get ready.”

I nodded hesitantly, a little worried. “Okaaay then. Well, I’m ready!”

She snorted in amusement, looking me up and down. “Are you sure you don’t want to change? You got a little something… well, everywhere.”

I glanced down, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion, then raising in shock. I was filthy, my entire body coated with dust and clumps of grey hair. My head snapped back up as I glared at Eda, throwing my hands in the air in exasperation. “Eda! This is what happens what you drop me under the couch, I was perfectly clean before! I took a shower this morning and everything!”

She cackled, her eyes alight with mirth and lacking any remorse. “Well that’s just too bad… Sucks to be you!”

I threw my head back with a groan, stomping my way upstairs as the sound of Eda’s raucous laughter echoed behind me. I quieted as I neared my room, gently pushing the door open and entering. King was now curled up in a ball, still fast asleep on my bed. I stopped at my dresser, picking out a dark green button-down and a pair of black jeans before heading to the bathroom.

I showered in record time, well aware that Eda would probably leave me behind if I was too slow. I pulled on the clothes, grabbing my shoes from my room before moving downstairs. Eda stood by the front door, waiting for me impatiently. As soon as she saw me, she turned and walked outside, leaving the door open for me as she talked to Hooty about something. I rolled my eyes at her abrupt departure before sitting down in a chair, putting my shoes on and cuffing my sleeves up past my elbows. Standing, I went outside, closing the door behind me.

Eda floated on her staff a few feet away, drumming her fingers against it as she waited. I hopped up behind her, nearly falling off in surprise when King poked his head out of Eda’s hair.

“King?” I said, confusion ringing in my voice. “I thought you were asleep in my room?”

He shrugged, his shoulders appearing for an instant before dropping back out of sight. “I moved. Eda woke me up while you were in the bathroom.”

I nodded slowly, watching as the demon yawned and closed his eyes, apparently going back to sleep.

Eda gave Owlbert a tap, and off we went. I leaned forward, raising my voice to be heard over the wind. “So, where’s the market?”

The witch glanced back for a second, “It’s in Bonesborough, the only town in the Boiling Isles. You’ll see it soon.”

Eagerly, I scanned the ground in front of us, hoping to catch a glimpse. After a couple minutes, buildings rose in the distance, coming into clarity as we got closer and making me inhale sharply as I looked on with wide eyes, my excitement rising.

By Earthly standards, it wasn’t very impressive. The dust-colored buildings were short and sturdy; rarely more than two or three stories tall. Walkways filled the spaces in between, made up of cracking grey flagstones lined with mortar. But in my eyes, it was awe-inspiring. There were so many creatures I had never seen before, and familiar humanoid shapes numbered few in comparison. My eyes darted everywhere, trying to take it all in as Eda guided the staff downwards, descending into a large, open street lined with stalls. We came to a hovering halt a few feet off the ground, and I immediately jumped off, my legs shaky as I looked around.

“Okay,” said Eda, placing a hand on my shoulder and making me jump. “We’ll set up here.” She raised an arm, drawing a large spell circle. A length of purple canvas came flying through, unfolding into a tent-like structure as it hit the ground. A table quickly followed, landing just in front of the tent. Eda drew back the tent flap, jerking her head for me to enter. I did, looking around in curiosity. The small space was filled with random human objects; covering the walls and lying in heaping piles on the ground.

Eda shouldered past me, maneuvering carefully around the piles as she scanned their contents. Glancing back at me, she gestured around vaguely. “Go through this junk, grab anything you think will sell. Keep in mind that weird stuff sells faster.”

I frowned in confusion, clueless. “All this,” I started, motioning towards a pile, “seems perfectly normal to me. What exactly counts as ‘weird’ here?”

Eda rolled her eyes, waving a hand at me in clear dismissal. “Oh, whatever. Just pick out a few things and bring them outside.” She began to go just that, rummaging through a pile and choosing seemingly random items.

I shrugged, moving to join her. Digging through unorderly stacks, I pulled out some of the more interesting things, setting them off to the side. Once I had a decent haul, I took it outside, where Eda was arranging the setup on table.

Glancing up as I exited, Eda motioned for me to drop my load on the table. I did so carefully, spreading it out so that everything was visible to the people passing by. “Now what?” I asked, turning to the witch.

“Now,” she replied, “we wait.” Summoning a chair, she sat down, her hands folded behind her head as she watched the passersby with sharp eyes.

I sat down on the paved ground with a sigh, leaning back against one of the tent’s support poles and fiddling with my shirt collar. King emerged from inside the tent, climbing onto my lap and curling up. I smiled down at the demon, softly petting him as I waited.

The next few hours dragged by painfully slow, the monotonous waiting broken every few minutes as people stopped to view or buy Eda’s wares. Every once and a while I was sent back into the tent to grab more items, but other than that I merely sat there, watching as Eda gleefully scammed her hapless customers into buying increasingly useless objects. Thirty more minutes passed by, and finally I couldn’t take it anymore. I threw my head back with a loud groan, the pole shaking slightly at the impact. Eda looked at me, raising her eyebrows in a clear _what the fuck do you want_ expression.

“Eda, I’m sooo bored,” I whined. “Can I go look around? I promise I won’t buy anything!”

She hesitated, tapping her chin in thought. My face fell into a pout, and I stared at her with pleading eyes. After a couple moments, Eda huffed and looked away. “Fine! Just take King with you.”

I jumped up with a happy squeal, tucking my arms under King to keep him from falling. “Thank you!! I won’t be gone for long!”

Eda nodded, sticking her head into the tent before turning back to me. “Here,” she said, holding out a pink harness, “for King. The straps go over your shoulders.”

I set King down and took it from her, quickly putting it on and lifting King into it, making him hang loosely against my chest. King promptly closed his eyes and went back to sleep, disinterested.

With a parting wave, I left Eda at her stand and walked down the rows of stalls, my eyes wide with awe as I took it all in. I wandered around, stopping whenever a particular stand caught my eye. Eventually, the street led me out of the market and into a collection of buildings, all with windows or counters to showcase their products. I stopped at one such building with a bunch of plants visible through the window, peeking into curiously.

“Hmm,” I pondered, “I wonder what strange plants this realm has… What do you think, King? Should we go in?”

The demon merely grumbled, waving a paw up at me sleepily.

“I’ll take that as a yes!” I pushed open the shop door, a bell jingling softly as I entered. My breath caught in my throat as I gazed around, marveling at the greenery.

“Hello!”

I jumped, spinning around to find a witch standing behind me, smiling warmly. She was a little shorter than me, with pale skin, green eyes, and shoulder length blue-grey hair.

“Hi!” I said, waving a little, “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

She laughed, “It’s fine, I was just in the back. My name’s Willow, are you looking for something in particular?”

I grinned sheepishly, “I’m Luz! I’m just looking around, really. I’ve never seen plants like these before, there’s nothing like this back home.”

She looked confused, then her eyes widened. “Oh! You’re a human! What are you doing in the Boiling Isles?”

“Um, I live here now, I guess?” I chuckled nervously. “Eda’s training me.” _Or she’s supposed to be, anyways_ , I thought, internally rolling my eyes.

Willow’s eyes got even wider, her ears pinning down as she backed away from me, her hands held against her chest defensively. “Edalyn Clawthorne? The Owl Lady?!” She gulped, her eyes shooting down to King before refocusing on me. “Of course,” she muttered, “you have her demon.”

I raised an eyebrow quizzically, perplexed by her reaction. “Yes? Is there something wrong with that?”

“No! Of course not!” She replied quickly, vigorously shaking her head. “It just surprised me, that’s all.” She cleared her throat. “I’ll be in the back, call out if you need me.” She spun around, walking purposely away.

“Wait!” I exclaimed, reaching out a hand slightly. She turned, tilting her head in question. I gestured around, “I don’t know anything about the plants here, could you tell me about them?”

Her eyes softened, and she nodded. “I’d love to.”

I grinned, looking around wildly at all the different plants. A tall, reedy one caught my eye, and I walked over to it, looking back at Willow. “What’s this one?”

She fell into step beside me, leaving a couple feet between us as she looked over my selection, a small smile forming on her lips. “It’s a Viriditas, they’re native to the lake at the center of the Isles. They don’t have any special properties, but they do produce a lot of oxygen.”

Nodding, I looked around for another, spotting a succulent-like shrub with large, lavender flowers. I pointed it out to the witch, watching as she drew a spell circle in the air, making the plant come floating towards us.

“This is a Calicem, they produce a sweet smell that lures bugs into their flowers, then they digest them for protein,” she said, tilting a flower towards me. I peeked in, noticing a pool of liquid at the bottom.

“What’s this?” I asked, poking a finger in to touch it.

She quickly sent the plant flying back to its table, chuckling lightly. “That,” she said, “is acid. It’s how they digest bugs, and it would melt your finger off if you touched it.”

I grinned, delighted. “That’s so cool!” I said, looking at Willow with big eyes. “Show me another one!” I felt the harness shift, and glanced down to see King yawning, his little limbs spreading out as he stretched. “Good morning, sleepyhead.” I cooed to him, amused.

He opened his eyes, blinking blearily up at me. “I’m hungry,” he complained sleepily, “Let’s go get Eda and head home.”

I rolled my eyes, smiling regretfully at Willow, who was watching us. “Sorry, looks like I gotta go feed this little guy. Thanks for showing me your plants!”

She smiled back. “It’s alright, you can’t let the King of Demons go hungry.”

I waved, making my way to the door.

“Luz, wait!”

I turned back, raising an eyebrow in question.

She gestured around. “All the plants I have here are houseplants, but if you’d like to meet me at the library tomorrow around noon, I can show you some of the more unusual ones. Only if you want to though.”

Happiness swelled in me. “Sure!” I chirped, “I would love that!”

Willow grinned. “Great! I’ll see you then!” She waved goodbye.

I backed out of the door, nearly tripping at the threshold, and shot her a pair of finger guns. Once I was outside, I spun around and started walking back through the market, humming as I looked for Eda’s purple tent.

Finally, it came into view, Eda still sitting in front. “Eda!” I called, jogging the rest of the way, making King squeak in annoyance. “Guess what? I made a friend!”

She stood with a smile. “Ah, Luz! There you are. Glad to hear it, kid. Now, help me pack up.”

Nodding, I grabbed the remaining merchandise off the table and dumped it on a random pile inside the tent. Exiting, I found Eda Standing next to a large spell circle, clearly waiting for me.

She began to float the table and tent through it, the latter collapsing in on itself as it went. “So,” she said, watching the process carefully, “who’d you meet?”

I smiled, “Her name’s Willow, she’s a witch! She owns a plant shop; we’re meeting at the library tomorrow so that she can teach me more about them.” I remembered Willow’s reaction when I mentioned Eda, and my smile faltered. “Eda…?” I said hesitantly.

She glanced down at me, frowning at my tone. “Yeah?”

I wrung my hands together, a little nervous. “She seemed scared of you… why is that?”

Eda sighed, waiting until the objects disappeared into the circle before closing it. “A few years back,” she began, her voice going hard, “The Emperor of the Isles lost something I cared about. I launched an attack on his castle, and in my anger, nearly killed him. I would have too, but that coward escaped.” She bared her teeth in a feral grin. “He and his coven haven’t had the courage to try and face me since then. Once word got around that I beat him, he started a smear campaign against me to make sure one no would do what I did,” she shrugged, “it made people afraid of me.”

I blinked, absorbing that information as the gears in my brain whirled. “What did he lose?” I asked curiously.

Eda paused, picking up her staff and turning away from me. “That’s not important. Come on, let’s go home.” She got on her staff, floating backwards towards me.

I hesitantly, then let it drop, not wanting to push her into sharing something she clearly didn’t want to. Hopping on the staff behind her, we took off for the Owl House, the distant sun starting to set.

After a couple minutes of silence, we landed in front of the house, Hooty voicing an annoying greeting:

“Welcome baaacccckkk.”

“Thanks, Hooty,” I said tiredly, pushing the door open. Walking a few feet inside, I stopped and kneeled, unclipping the harness on my chest and freeing King. “Do you want me to make you something for dinner?” I asked the sleepy demon.

“Hmmm, no.” He responded, curling up against my chest. “I want to go to bed.”

I chuckled lowly. “You’ve been asleep all day, how are you still tired?”

He didn’t bother to respond, instead closing his eyes and tucking his head into my shirt. I shook my head, standing and moving towards the stairs. A thought occurred to me, and I spun around to facing Eda, who was standing in the kitchen drinking. 

“Could you give me a ride to the library tomorrow before noon?” I asked, “I don’t know where it is.”

Eda nodded, stifling a yawn. “Sure thing, kiddo.”

I smiled gratefully. “Thanks! Goodnight, Eda!” I turned and went up the stairs, hearing a faint response from the witch. I entered my room, closing the door behind me and setting King down gently on the bed. I rubbed my eyes, suddenly tired from the long day. After changing into my pajamas, I climbed into bed, smiling as King curled up against my stomach. My eyes drifted closed, and I fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

When I woke, light was streaming in through the window, the stained glass lighting the floor in a kaleidoscope of color. I sat up with a yawn, stretching and blinking sleepily. Climbing out of bed, I left my room and padded downstairs, finding Eda and King sitting at the table eating breakfast.

“Good morning,” said Eda. She gestured to the empty seat, which had a plate in front of it. “I made quiche. There’s a piece there for you.”

“Good morning. And thanks.” I said, my voice still husky with sleep as I held back another yawn. I grabbed a glass, filling it with water before joining them at the table. I ate quickly, hungry after not eating dinner the night before. After I had finished, I sat back with a content sigh, eyeing Eda. “What time is it?” I asked.

She looked up, glancing at some device hanging on the wall. “A little after nine. You slept for a long time,” she chuckled.

I smiled guiltily, shrugging. “I was tired.” Standing up, I washed my plate and cup before returning to my room, rummaging through my dresser for clothes. Finally, I settled on a light blue polo shirt and black jean shorts. Tossing them on, I left the top shirt buttons undone and pulled on a pair of simple, black sneakers. I got up to leave, hesitating by the door and turning around.

“Umm,” I pondered. “I have three hours to kill… what do I want to do?” My eyes fell on my Azura books, and I smiled. I grabbed the first book and headed downstairs, sprawling languidly across the couch to read as I waited. I opened the book, quickly getting sucked into the magical world of witches and magic, despite having read it countless times already.

A weight landed on my stomach, making me jump and drop the book. I winced as it hit the floor, silently apologizing to the already battered pages. Tucking in my chin, I looked down my chest to see King curling up, his head facing me as he closed his eyes to nap. I chuckled lowly, shaking my head at the demon. Reaching out, I snagged my book off the floor, smoothing out the ruffled pages before turning back to where I had left off.

I felt King shift, moving up my chest slightly. Suddenly, something smacked the back of my book, sending it flying out of my hands and into my face. I hissed in pain and surprise, moving the book off my face and glaring down at King. “Why?” I asked, exasperated. He glared right back.

“Pet me!” he demanded.

I rolled my eyes, smiling slightly as I did what he asked. I leaned the book against the back of the couch, struggling to hold it open with one hand as I kept reading.

King stretched, opening his eyes and looking at my book curiously. “What are you reading?”

I closed the book, using a finger as a placeholder as I showed him the cover. “Book one of The Good Witch Azura series.”

He hummed in response, laying his head back down, making me wince as his fangs poked into my ribcage. “Oh. Owlbert brings those books through the portal sometimes,” he mumbled, closing his eyes again. “They always sell fast.” He lay silent for a moment, then cracked open an eye to gaze back up at me. “Can you read it to me?”

I opened the book again, clearing my throat as I prepared myself. “The solstice neared,” I started, lowing my voice dramatically, “and the Good Witch Azura knew she would have to face her immoral foe…” I continued reading to King, who’s eyes were now opened wide as he listened. Time flew by as I read, only stopping when King voiced a question or comment.

After a while, I heard a groan sound from the other side of the room, making me pause and turn my head. Eda stood by the front door, misery plain on her face.

“Will you stop reading that frivolous nonsense?”

I grinned, waving the book at her pointedly. “It’s not nonsense! It’s a wonderful book of magic, of love and betrayal. An epic battle between good and evil.” I raised a hand dramatically, King mirroring my actions with a cackle.

The Owl Lady rolled her eyes sharply, shaking her head in refusal. “No, it’s not. It’s awful, and I hate it.” She grabbed her staff, which had been leaning by the door. “Didn’t you want me to take you to the library?”

My eyes widened, and I sat up, making King slid into my lap with an angry squeak. “Yes! Sorry, I’m coming.” I said hurriedly, bookmarking my place in the book before setting it down on the table next to the couch. I patted King’s head a couple times before standing up and going to join Eda at the door, calling back to the demon, “Sorry, King! We’ll keep reading after I get back.” I heard him grumble a response behind me and we walked outside, quickly taking off on Owlbert and flying back towards Bonesborough.

After five minutes, we descended in front of a large building; easily one of the biggest in the town. I hopped off the staff, turning back to Eda.

“Alright, kid,” she said, already drifting back into the sky, “I’ll see you later. If you’re not back by nightfall I’ll come looking for you, but otherwise you’re on your own. Bye!” With that, she shot back towards the Owl House, not waiting for my response.

I huffed, crossing my arms against my chest. “Guess I’ll be finding my own way home,” I muttered to myself. Turning towards the library, I set off up the stairs, admiring the grand architecture. At the top, I opened the heavy doors, struggling a bit under their weight before sliding through.

I came to a halt just past the threshold, my jaw dropping in awe as I looked around, my eyes darting everywhere as I tried to absorb what I was seeing. It was an open, two story area; the whole thing filled with tall shelves housing thousands of books each. Books floated through the air, summoned by studying witches or sorting themselves back onto the shelves. _Ay dios mio_ , I thought, _this is incredible_ _!_

Shaking my head to snap myself out of my revelry, I stepped forward, glancing around for any sign of Willow amongst the organized chaos. Movement caught my eye, and I turned to see Willow waving her arms at me to catch my attention. I grinned, walking over to her.

She smiled. “Hey Luz! Glad you made it. You ready?”

“Yep!” I said, bouncing up and down on my heels.

“Good!” she chirped, turning to walk down an aisle, gesturing for me to follow. “I’ve already gotten some books for us to look at, and I brought a friend to help me.”

I fell into line beside her, looking around curiously as we entered a circular sitting area, the bookshelves curving out around it. In a chair sat another witch. He was tall and gangly, with dark skin and eyes, and was wearing a blue hoodie and grey jeans. He looked up as we drew near, standing quickly and smiling at me.

“Luz, this is Gus,” said Willow, smiling, “He was so excited when I told him I met a real human! He wanted to come along and meet you himself.”

Gus chuckled, his eyes shining as he rubbed the back of his neck timidly. “Honestly, I didn’t really believe you were actually a human, but look at you!” he said excitedly, throwing his arms out, “you _are_ a human! That is so cool!! I’m president of the Human Appreciation Society at school, so I’ve studied your kind extensively, but I never thought I’d ever meet one of you! I have so many questions! Do you humans really have a hole in your stomach?!”

I laughed, grinning at his contagious enthusiasm. “Hey Gus, it’s nice to meet you too! And, um, yes? It’s called a belly button, and it’s more of an indent than a hole. See?” I lifted up my shirt a bit to show him, making his eyes widen. “And school?” I added, my voice climbing in excitement. “Like, magic school? There is one of those here?!”

Next to me, Willow laughed. “Of course there is! That’s how we witches learn how to control our magic.” She paused. “Well, there’s actually several schools, but Hexside is the one Gus goes to, and I graduated from there last summer.”

“That’s awesome!” I said, practically vibrating in my elation, “Do you think I would be allowed to attend?”

They hesitated, glancing at each other before looking back at me. After a silent moment, Gus cleared his throat. “Probably not,” he said regretfully, “the few documented cases of humans coming to the Isles all state very clearly that they were unable to preform magic, and there is an age limit, too. How old are you?”

“Eighteen,” I replied.

He winced. “Yeah… they don’t accept people older than seventeen as first-year students. There’s some legal reason, I don’t know what it is though,” he said with a shrug.

“Oh…” my body slumped in disappointment. Willow nudged me softly, making me turn towards her.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly, “but I’ll teach you about magical plants now, if you want.”

I immediately perked up, shaking off my dejection and smiling at her. “I’d love that!”

She nodded with a smile, sitting down in a chair by a table, which had a small stack of books balanced on top of it. “Okay,” she began, “Gus here is in the illusion track, so he’ll be able to conjure up life size apparitions of plants for you to see.”

Gus moved to take a seat next to the witch, making me quickly do the same. Willow grabbed a book off the top of the pile, opening it to the index and holding it out between us. “Here, Luz. Look through the categories of plants and choose the type that seems the most interesting,” she said.

I nodded slowly, taking the book from her and scanning the page. A phrase caught my eye, my head snapping up to look at Willow in disbelief. “ _Noxious maneaters_?!” I exclaimed.

She grinned, taking the book from me and flipping to the designated section. Slowing as she reached it, her eyes scanned the plant diagrams before stopping, her finger tapping the page purposely as she passed the book to Gus.

Gus raised his eyebrows, looking over what Willow pointed out. “Ooooh,” he said mischievously, his eyes lighting up, “that’s a good one.” He lifted a hand, pausing and studying the page for a moment, his eyebrows furrowing in concentration. Then he began to slowly draw a blue spell circle, making me sit up in surprise.

“Why is your magic blue?” I asked curiously.

Since Gus was concentrating, Willow answered my question, “it’s because he’s in the illusion track. Blue is their color. I’m a member of the plant coven, so mine is green.” She drew a fraction of a circle herself to illustrate her point before wiping it away.

“Ohh,” I said, taking a moment to think. “Eda’s is gold, what does that mean?”

Gus flinched and Willow’s ears moved down at the mention of Eda, but they recovered quickly, trying to cover up their reactions. Willow cleared her throat softly before responding. “When you join a coven, the head witch locks all other magic but the one represented by that coven. So, mine is green because I can only preform plant magic, and Gus’s is blue because he only studies illusion magic. When you cast different types of magic over a long period of time, the color of your magic changes to reflect that. The Owl Lady’s never joined a coven, so she’s been preforming every type of magic her whole life. The color of her magic reflects that.”

I nodded slowly in understanding, absorbing what Willow said. Suddenly, a giant, blue apparition unfolded in front of me, pulling me out of my head and making me look up with a surprised gasp. “What _is_ that?!” I exclaimed, my eyes going wide. It was huge, with one thick, leafy stalk that wound up over our heads, ending in a giant bulb-like appendage.

Gus and Willow both chuckled at my reaction, the latter replying, “They’re called Satis. Very dangerous, I wouldn’t recommend you go anywhere near one. See that bulb at the top?” She pointed upwards, making me nod in response. “The leaves covering the stalk are very light and vibrate when something passes by. This sends a chemical signal to the bulb, which attacks and eats whatever walked past it.”

I watched in awe as another illusion appeared, this one of a witch I didn’t recognize. She walked past the stalk, as just as Willow said, the bulb shot down, opening to reveal rings of teeth. It slammed into the witch, the bulb closing around her before slowly drawing itself back into the air before fading away. I winced in pity for the illusion, “Ouch,” I said shakily, “that seems like it would hurt.” I turned to Gus, a large smile growing on my face. “Can you do another one?” I asked excitedly. He nodded, flipping to a random page before summoning another apparition.

We kept at it for a few hours, me marveling at every new plant I saw. Eventually, Gus sat back with a yawn, rubbing his eyes sleepily. “Sorry Luz,” he said regretfully, “I’m out of energy.”

I shrugged, “That’s fine. Thanks for doing that for me!”

He smiled, nodding his head in response before summoning something out of the air.

I gazed at it curiously. “What’s that?”

He looked up from it, tilting it towards me so that I could see. “It’s a scroll,” he replied, “Um, it’s basically like human phones, only more magical.”

Willow stood, stretching for a moment before drawing a spell circle, making the books scattered around us go floating back to their respective shelves. “You should get one,” she added, “that why we could text each other!”

I smiled, “Sure! I’ll ask Eda if she’ll get one for me.” I blinked, “Speaking of Eda, what time is it? I’m supposed to be back at the Owl House by nightfall.”

Gus glanced back at his scroll, “A little before four.”

I sighed, standing up. “Well, I better get going then. It’ll probably take me an hour to find my way back,” I said miserably.

Willow frowned, “You don’t know where the Owl House is?”

I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly. “Not really? This is only my second time in Bonesborough, I have absolutely no idea where I am.”

Gus shrugged, standing as well. “We’ll walk you back then. Wouldn’t want you to get eaten by a satis,” he said with a chuckle, stooping a bit to sling an arm over my shoulder.

I grinned, elated. “Really? Thank you!”

Together, we set off through Bonesborough, Willow and Gus pointing out buildings and chatting as we walked. Eventually we exited the town, swinging onto a slightly overgrown trail through the darkening woods. Willow cast a spell, summoning a sphere of green light that floated overhead, shedding light over the trail so that we wouldn’t trip. 

After ten minutes or so, the trees began to thin, and we walked into the clearing where the Owl House sat; a little island of emptiness surrounded by trees, which quickly gave way to the cliff. I turned to face my new friends, a smile on my face. “Thanks guys! I don’t think I would have found it without you.”

Willow laughed. “Yeah, it’s pretty hard to find if you don’t know exactly where to look.”

I nodded vigorously, in full agreement with that statement. Jabbing a thumb over my shoulder, I asked, “Do you want to come inside for a bit?” They looked at each other hesitantly. “I promise Eda isn’t that scary,” I added gently.

They nodded slowly, making me beam. “Great!” I grabbed their wrists, pulling them towards the house excitedly. “You’ll love it! It’s very homey and- oh no…” I ended with a groan, noticing Hooty stretching himself towards us.

“Hiiiiiii Luz! You’re back, and you brought friends!” He said, his annoying voice making my eye twitch.

“Hi, Hooty,” I deadpanned, already walking past him, still pulling Willow and Gus along. The door owl retracted himself, obnoxiously keeping pace with me. He was suddenly yanked back a few feet as the door opened, revealing Eda standing in the threshold, scowling.

“Who are you _talking_ to?” She snapped. Then she caught sight of me, her frown turning upside down. “Luz! You’re back, good. Who are your friends?”

Smiling again, I pulled them forward, letting go of their wrists as they drew level with me. “This is Willow,” I said, “and this Gus!” I finished, gesturing to each in turn. They both gave a weak smile and a wave, their eyes wide and ears firmly pinned down.

“Hi, Owl Lady,” Willow squeaked, her hands nervously clenched by her sides, “Nice to meet you.”

Eda scoffed, looking down at the nervous witches with a smile. “Kid, please, there’s no need for that. Just call me Eda.”

Willow nodded slowly, jumping a bit as Gus elbowed her. “O-okay, Eda,” she stammered, “well, Gus and I really should get going, so goodnight.” She and Gus both gave me a quick hug before turning and walking back into the forest.

“Bye, see you around!” I called after them, watching as they looked back with wave before turning and heading inside, Eda following in suit.

“Twitchy little things, aren’t they?” Eda remarked, closing the door before heading upstairs.

“Yeah,” I said, shrugging. “Once they get to know you better, they’ll get over it. You’re pretty harmless.”

Eda spun around, placing a hand to her chest in hurt. “Me, harmless? Ha! You wound me, kid.” She turned back around just as quickly, stomping up the stairs.

I shook my head with a smile, spotting King curled up on the couch and moving towards him. “Hey carino,” I greeted him, patting his head as he languidly opened an eye. “I’m back, want to keep reading?”

He yawned, stretching a bit before responding in a sleepy voice. “Yes please. Can we go to your bed?”

I nodded, picking him up and grabbing the book off the table. I went to my room, crossing the space to gently set King down on my bed, where he promptly curled up again, watching me in anticipation. Laying down beside him, I opened the book to where we had left off, clearing my throat before starting. “Azura knew she was in for the toughest fight of her life, but she refused to back down as she stepped into the Evil Wizard’s arena. Raising her staff to the heavens, she prepared to die.”


	5. Nighttime Ventures

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I'm in a writing class, does this count as studying?
> 
> Former gifted kid brain says no, but depressed lesbian brain says yes.

I sat up in my bed, leaning against the wall. In one hand, I held the second Azura book. In the other, a lit candle. My eyes burned as I struggled to make out the words on the flickering pages. _I’ll just finish this chapter_ , I thought, my mind slow with sleep, _one more, then I’ll go to sleep_. I shivered slightly in the cold, nighttime air, turning the page clumsily as I read on. “Azura crept through the damp tomb,” I murmured lowly, reading aloud to keep myself awake, “her noble courage began to waver as the ghosts of Gaude materialized around her, wailing their deathly sins. They reached towards Azura, wanting her life for th-”

_SLAM!_

I jumped with a scream, my book falling to the floor as hot wax splashed onto my arm. “Mierda!” I yelped, vainly scrubbing my arm with my free hand, “santa mierda que duele!”

A chuckle came from the doorway, making me freeze. My head shot up, relaxing when I saw Eda standing in the threshold. “Sorry Luz,” she said, not looking very sorry at all, “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

I gingerly set the candle down on the nightstand, glaring at the amused witch. “Sure you didn’t,” I retorted, sarcasm thick in my voice, “That’s why you threw the door open, to _not_ give me a heart attack.” I retrieved my book from the floor, marking my page before setting it down by the candle.

“I can neither confirm nor deny that statement,” Eda said with a shrug. She drew a spell circle, making me sigh in relief as the wax evaporated from my skin. “Now,” she continued, “get dressed. It’s time for your first lesson.”

My eyes went wide, and I jumped out of bed, no longer tired as I bounced over to her excitedly. “You’ll teach me do to magic?! Finally! But why now? It’s the middle of the night.”

Eda rolled her eyes. “I couldn’t sleep, that’s why. Plus, you’re _much_ too annoying during the day.”

“Gee, thanks,” I deadpanned. “So,” I began, grinning, “does that make you a _night_ owl? Ha! Get it?! ‘Cause you’re the Owl Lady!”

Eda scowled darkly, turning on her heel and walking away. “Nope, I change my mind. Go back to bed.”

“No, wait!” I called after her desperately. “I’ll be right down!” I quickly threw on a pair of shoes, black sweatpants, and a purple hoodie, charging down the stairs to find Eda sitting at the table. “What are you gonna teach me?” I asked excitedly, grabbing a granola bar from the kitchen before sitting across from the witch. “Oh! How about some dark, forbidden magic that will emotionally scar me for life!”

She snorted. “Kid, that kind of stuff would kill you,” she paused, tapping her chin in thought, “Although… after that pun I’m not sure I would mind.”

I rolled my eyes, stuffing my face as I waited for her to continue.

And she did, albeit with a long sigh. “However, you’re more useful alive than dead. Well, that and I don’t want to be stuck with your ghost for all of eternity.”

I grinned, nodding in agreement “Yeah. I would _definitely_ haunt you.”

Ignoring my comment, she stood and walked to the door, picking up her staff before heading outside.

I quickly stood, shoving the last of my late-night breakfast into my mouth and following her, closing the door behind me and looking around, straining to spot the witch in the nearly pitch-black night. A soft, golden glow appear to my left, and I turned to find Eda standing by the cliff, a light spell hovering at her shoulder as she waited for me. I walked over to her, standing beside her silently as I gazed into the water below.

Without a word, Eda cast another spell, making me inhale sharply as I was pulled over the cliff. Panic took over, and I clung to Eda, my eyes closed tightly. “Kid, let go,” she complained gruffly, “you’re not falling.”

I peeked open an eye, straightening as I saw the narrow beach slowly drifting closer. After a moment, we alighted safely on the sand, Eda removing my arms from herself as soon as we touched down. I gazed around curiously, trying to figure out why we were down here. The beach was awash in a faint, purple light, and the still air resonated with the gentle sound of waves breaking on the shore.

“This is the Boiling Sea,” said Eda, speaking softly, “as its name suggests, the waters reach boiling temperatures during the day, enough to melt the flesh off your bones.” She touched her hand subconsciously, wincing at the memory of some old pain. “It’s perfectly safe at night, however, though it is still a fair deal warmer than the seas in your realm.” She crouched down at the shoreline, just out of reach of the questing water.

I sat down beside her, curiously putting one hand in the water. As Eda said, it was warm, though not enough to hurt. There was a minute of silence, and I stared out over the sloping sea, blinking as I noticed a faint, purple gleam in the coming waves, dissipating as they broke on the shore. “What is that?” I asked, pointing it out to Eda.

Eda smiled, putting out her light with a snap of her fingers. The lights in the waves surged, gaining brightness as the night got darker, until it became a swirling mosaic of purple shades. I sucked in a breath, awestruck by the sight. “It’s beautiful…” I murmured. Eda nodded beside me.

“I’ve read books from your world,” she began, leaning back on her arms, “humans have no concept of what magic _is_. It’s not a gift, nor a random occurrence of fate, it has logic and meaning behind it, just like all things.” She paused, looking up at the dim stars before continuing. “The Isles are of the body of a fallen Titan, ancient beings of demonic origin. As it died, its blood gushed out, reacting with the sea and creating magical energy as we know it. Over the years, rain spread that energy over the body of the Titan; causing genetic mutations in the flora and fauna that grew from the remains. The boiling rain also broke down the body, making its surface survivable.

When witches migrated here, they found it swarming with demons, and they would have left immediately if not for the magic here. Over the years, they learned how to channel it through themselves, giving them the power needed to fight back hostile demons. Annnd blah blah blah, centuries went by, now here we are.”

I sat silently, slowly processing the flood of information. Finally, I turned to Eda. “So, what were the Titans? Where did they all go?” I asked curiously.

Eda shrugged. “No one knows, they just disappeared or died off. There are other Isles out there, I’ve been to a few.”

I frowned, thinking over that. “Is that where the witches came from? Other Isles?”

“Nope,” said Eda, “There used to be a mainland, but the Titans dying in the sea caused the water levels to rise exponentially. As far as I know, the Titans are the only landmasses left.”

I nodded slowly, mulling it over before a new thought occurred to me. “How did the first witches learn magic?” I asked excitedly.

Eda scowled, her ears pinning down. “I don’t know, unfortunately. When Emperor Belos rose to power, he had all the records made by wild witches burned. There’s nothing left, and believe me, I’ve searched.”

I slouched with a disappointed sigh. “So that’s it then,” I said gloomily, “I’ll never be able to learn magic.”

Eda turned to me, a glint in her eyes. “No,” she said firmly, “I know there _has_ to be some forgotten way to channel magical energy, otherwise we witches wouldn’t be able to perform it either.”

I furrowed my eyebrows, responding, “but don’t you have some physical difference that lets you use magic? That’s what you told me when I first met you.”

Eda nodded. “That’s the thing, over time we adapted to use magic. Eventually, we developed a growth protruding off our hearts, called a bile sack. It pulls in magical energy from our environment and allows us to channel it through our body to use it to cast spells. Before that, there would have had to be another way.”

“Huh,” I said, intrigued. A cold gust of wind hit me, making me shiver. “So, why did you bring me out here, exactly? We could have had this conversation inside the nice, warm house,” I complained, rubbing my arms in an effort to warm myself up.

The witch rolled her eyes, cuffing the back of my head. “Because,” she said in the slow voice of someone talking to an idiot, “The sea is the source of all magic, weren’t you listening? If there’s any way for you to learn to use magic, you’d find it here.”

“Oh,” I said dumbly. “Yeah, that make sense.”

Eda shook her head, muttering something unflattering under her breath. “I’m so glad you understand,” she deadpanned, “now, go into the water.”

“What?” I said, surprised. “Eda! I’ll freeze!”

She groaned, slapping a hand against her forehead. “I swear, you’re even more bone-headed at night! It’s the _Boiling Sea_ , it’s warm, nitwit!”

I smiled sheepishly. “Ohh, right. Oops.” Standing, I stripped down to my boyshorts and bra, hissing through my teeth as the frigid air hit me and throwing my clothes down beside a very grumpy Eda. With that, I turned and walked into the sea, relaxing as the warm temperature shed the cold from my bones. A couple feet in, I paused, turning back to face Eda nervously. “There’s nothing in here that’ll eat me, right?”

She shrugged, uncaring. “Probably not. Just don’t swim towards anything living.”

“Wow!” I exclaimed, glaring at the witch, “it’s truly remarkable how unhelpful that is.”

Eda merely motioned for me to keep moving in response. I rolled my eyes, continuing my trudge into the water. Once it was up to my stomach, I stopped, sinking until the water lapped at my chin. I smiled, enjoying the warmth. Taking a breath, I dunked my head under the water, my eyes narrowed as I ignored the burning salt water and looked around. The water was lit purple, minerals amongst the sand shining white as they reflected the light. About thirty feet out, the sea floor dropped off sharply; the sloping shoreline giving way to open water.

I resurfaced, releasing my breath as I rubbed my burning eyes, wincing at the pain. I shook out my hair, pushing the short locks out of my face so that I could see. The small, purple waves hit me gently, lifting my body up each time in an odd, syncopated rhythm. Curiously, I reached out a hand, trying to grab the purple light. “Ay dios mio…” I muttered in awe as it swept right through my hand, illuminating it from the inside before exiting again, keeping time with the water as it continued to the shore. Another wave went past, making me frown in thought as I noticed that this time the light parted around me, not passing through as it had before. _I wonder…_

I reached out again as the next wave drew near, this time focusing again on the magic in it. The light entered my skin, making me grin. I started moving backwards towards the shore, keeping pace with the wave as I studied the glow coming from my hand. It appeared to lie just under my skin, pulsing softly as if it were breathing. As I gazed at it, a shape began to form; thin, golden lines faded out of the purple light, still pulsing in time with the rest. I gasped, my eyes widening in shock as they darted over the glyph-like figure. In my focus, I stumbled over something in the sand, falling with a _splash_ into the water.

I quickly stood up, frantically scanning my hand for any sign of the light. To my disappointment, it was gone. But exhilaration rapidly took over, and I spun towards Eda, charging out of the water in my enthusiasm. “Eda!” I crowed, “I saw something! In the light!”

Eda stood, grinning as she shared in my excitement. “Great job, kid! I knew you could do it. What did it look like?”

I grabbed a nearby stick of driftwood, kneeling and drawing in the sand the glyph I had seen. “Kinda like a person,” I said as I worked, “It had a line down the center, a circle on top with a little triangular hat. There was another, bigger triangle extended from the base of the circle to about where the legs would be. And… two angled, parallel lines at the torso.” I paused, studying it with a slight frown before perking up. “Oh! And there was a circle around the whole thing!”

I stood, stepping back beside Eda. It was silent for a moment, then I glanced up at Eda. “What do you think it means?”

She was still staring at it, going over the shape with sharp eyes. “Hmmm,” she pondered, tracing it in the air with one hand, “I’d guess that it’s the written symbol for either light or water. But if that’s the case, then it should be activated by now…” She frowned, thinking over the dilemma. “Oh, I know!” She said, snapping a finger, “try drawing another circle around it. We use circles to channel magic, so maybe it’s the same here.”

I nodded, hurriedly doing as she suggested. I watched it for a second, then turned back to the witch with a frown. “Nothing’s happening,” I said dejectedly, my shoulders slumping in disappointment.

She sighed, reaching out and ruffling my hair. “Don’t worry, kiddo. We’ll figure this out. Why don’t you go put your clothes back on so that you don’t freeze.”

I blinked, looking down to see that I was standing there in only my bra and boyshorts. “Oh, right,” I said. I tried to use my hands to rub my skin dry, not wanting to put clothes on while I was still wet.

Eda shook her head at my actions, reaching up a hand to draw a spell circle. The water on me suddenly evaporated with a dull hiss, giving me a second of warmth before a particularly chilly gust of wind hit me.

I shivered, clenching my jaw to stop my teeth from rattling. “Thanks, Eda.” I went over to where I had thrown my clothes, shaking out the sand before putting them back on. That done, I moved back Eda, rubbing my hands vigorously along my arms to generate some warmth. “What are you thinking?” I asked her, practically able to see the gears in her brain turning.

“Well,” she began, “I think we need to take a step back. How were you able to see it?” She turned, watching me expectantly.

I cleared my throat, taking a moment to get my thoughts in order. “I kinda, focused on the light, I guess?” I rubbed my aching eyes, trying to think. “Like, when I focused on the light, it would physically pass through me, and my hand would turn purple. If I didn’t, it just parted around me. So, I focused on it while keeping time with the wave, and after a couple seconds that glyph appeared.” I finished, gesturing to my drawing in the sand.

Eda frowned, the gears picking up more speed. “So, even though you can’t channel magic,” she said slowly, “the energy still needed a connection to you, a physical substance, to gain physicality itself.” Her eyes lit up, “that must be it! Try touching it.”

I shrugged, completely lost in the conversation. Nevertheless, I reached down a hand and touched the glyph.

Immediately, the drawing flared into life, bright tracks of golden light racing to fill in the lines. I stumbled backwards in surprise, my wide eyes fixed on the glyph as it started to compress in on itself, the edges lifting into the air as it peeled away from the ground. After a moment, it was over. Floating above the space where the drawing had been was a small sphere of brilliant, golden light, pulsing softly.

A wild grin grew on my face, and I whipped my head to stare at Eda, my eyes shining. “Eda!!” I crowed jovially, vibrating with excitement, “I did it! I did magic!” I laughed raucously, jumping up and down erratically.

Eda laughed, smiling at me proudly. “Fantastic job, Luz! I told you you could do it!” She clapped her hands together, her smile turning feral. “Now, it’s time for part two of this lesson. Application!” With that, she drew a spell circle, sending a giant fireball flying towards me.

“Mierda!” I yelped, dodging on instinct, barely avoiding the deadly projectile. I stood there blankly as my mind tried to catch up on what the hell just happened, snapping back into focus as Eda hurled another fireball my way. I ducked out of the way with a scowl, throwing up my hands and glaring at the grinning witch. “What the _fuck_ , Eda?!”

She cackled, drawing circle after circle in the air around her. “Until you learn counter spells, the best way for you to survive in a fight is to get used to not dying!” She paused, staring at me amusedly, her spells hovering like golden hoops around her. “Plus,” she added, “I get to throw fire at you!” She snapped her fingers, and her barrage was unleashed.

My jaw dropped at the shear amount of fire headed towards me. So, like any reasonable human would, I turned and ran; the sand trembling beneath my feet as fireballs crashed into it, sending molten glass spraying towards me. A stream of curses erupted from my mouth as Eda pulled alongside me, relaxing on her staff while I ran for my life. I glanced over at her, weaving slightly to avoid the fire on my heels. “You,” I panted, “are a _terrible_ teacher.”

Eda merely shrugged, looking very content with this situation. “I disagree. Not dying is a very important life skill. You should be thanking me!”

Gritting my teeth in annoyance, I violently launched myself to the side, grabbing the top of Eda’s staff and using my weight to yank it down until it hit the ground, catapulting Eda off of it. My breath whooshed out of me as I landed hard on my stomach, making me grunt in pain. I lay still for a moment recovering, then slowly heaved myself up, still holding onto the staff in one hand. Looking back, I sighed in relief as I noticed that the fire had stopped.

“Good thinking, Luz!”

I turned back. Eda was walking back towards me, covered in sand and grinning.

“Maintaining spells requires concentration. If you surprise or distract a witch, their focus will be broken and the spell will dissolve.”

I chuckled, rubbing my head sheepishly. “I just wanted you to faceplant, that’s all.”

Eda rolled her eyes, taking back her staff and getting back on. “Okay,” she said, “enough practice. Let’s get you some experience!”

I took a step back, crossing my arms and eyeing the witch warily. “Experience, how…?” I asked hesitantly.

Eda snorted. “Don’t give me that look! We’re only gonna commit a _small_ crime. Nothing to worry about.”

I shook my head, climbing on behind her and nearly falling right off again as we shot into the sky. Gripping the staff tightly, I tried to extract more information from Eda. “And what ‘small’ crime would that be, exactly?”

She shrugged, calling back, “relieving the local prison of some of its stolen contraband. It’ll be easy.”

“Alright, fine,” I sighed, wondering if I was going to regret getting on the staff.

After a few silent minutes, we landed on the top of a giant, grey-bricked castle. I looked around, perplexed. Turning back to Eda, I asked, “Shouldn’t there be guards? You said this was a prison.”

Eda chuckled and ruffled my hair, making me duck away with a squawk. “Silly human. Nobody escapes the Conformitorium, so they don’t need to have any guards. Now, any use of magic inside will set off an alarm, so stealth is imperative. I’ve done this before, so I’ll lead the way. Pay attention to your surroundings, 'cause if one of us gets spotted we’ll have to hightail it outta there. Got that?”

“I-”

“Great! Now let’s get going.” She opened a nearby hatch in the roof, climbing down the ladder and disappearing from view.

“Ah, fuck,” I muttered to myself as I started climbing down after her, “I’m _definitely_ gonna regret this.”

We dropped off the ladder and into a narrow, dimly lit hallway. Eda took the lead, silently gesturing for me to follow. We wandered through the passageways, occasionally ducking out of sight as uniformed figures strolled past, obviously not alert nor expecting anyone. The winding corridors led us deep into the prison, though each new turn only revealed more grey tunnels. By this point, I was thoroughly lost. To my relief, Eda kept walking purposely forward, hardly hesitating at the many intersections.

Finally, we came to a large wooden door, and Eda stopped, carefully cracking it open and peeking inside. After a few tense seconds, she pushed it open wide, turning back and motioning me through with a grin. I entered cautiously, my jaw dropping as I looked around. We were now in a large, open room. The floor stretched out five more feet in front of us before sloping off, leading down a few more feet into a giant pit of stuff.

I heard the door clink closed behind me, and a couple seconds later Eda passed me, stretching as she headed for the pit. “Okay, kiddo!” she called back to me, “pick out whatever you want, the tab is on me.” With that, she started rummaging through the dump enthusiastically.

With a shrug, I moved to do the same. I walked carefully out into the pit, my arms out for balance as I meandered along, scanning the objects around me for anything of interest. _For all the hundreds of thousands of items_ , I thought with a frown, _there really isn’t much here._

After an hour of searching, I got bored, and decided to take a nap by the door while I waited for Eda to be done. The witch in question was still roaming around, stuffing objects into a sack. I started to drift back towards the exit, aimlessly eyeing the stuff I passed. My foot suddenly got caught on something, making me stumble forward with a yelp, windmilling my arms to try and catch my balance before falling heavily, my head bouncing off something hard. I flipped onto my back; my eyes closed tightly as I groaned in pain.

Eda’s laughter rang out from behind me. “Nice going, kid! You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I replied, rubbing my aching brow. “I hit my head pretty good though.” I could hear Eda’s footsteps draw steadily nearer, and I cracked open an eye as a shadow fell over me.

Eda stood above me, frowning. She silently reached out a hand, pulling me upright once I took it. Her eyes went to my head, and she winced sympathetically. “Oh, yeah. That looks like it hurts. Here.” She drew a spell circle, and the pain immediately dissipated, making me sigh in relief.

“Thank you,” I told her gratefully. Looking down to see what I landed on, I froze, reaching down and picking it up carefully. It was a small, grey, intricately carved wooden hawk. I turned, showing my find to Eda. “Is this a palisman?” I asked her shakily.

Her eyebrows rose at the sight of it, and she gently took it from me, turning it over to reveal an interlock on one of its feet. “Huh. It is,” she said, frowning, “we’ll have to take it with us. This isn’t a good place for this poor guy.”

My eyebrows furrowed. “But why is he here?”

Eda shrugged. “My best guess is that he got confiscated from a witch, and then got lost and thrown in with all this junk.” She carefully slipped him into her sack, turning back to me. “Alright. We’ll drop him off with the Bat Queen before heading home. She takes care of all abandoned palismans. Ready to go?”

I nodded, and we turned and headed to the door. We were only a few feet away from it when it suddenly slammed open, making both of us freeze. A guard stood facing us, equally frozen in his shock. Shaking herself into motion, Eda jumped onto her staff, grabbing my wrist and yanking me onto it as well before shoving the sack in my arms and taking off. We flew over the head of the surprised guard and out the door, but not fast enough. The guard came to his senses and jumped up, grabbing onto my ankle and dragging me off the staff. I fell with a pained yelp, dropping the sack and stretching out my arms to break my fall. I landed hard on my side, sliding a few feet from the guard’s throw. Before I could scramble up to escape, my limbs snapped together, not obeying my frantic efforts to move. I writhed around on the floor, trying in vain to break my magical bonds.

A low, empty chuckle sounded from the door, making me freeze. “Thought you got away, didn’t you?” taunted a male voice. Panic rose from a pit in my stomach, consuming any rational thoughts. “Well, you were wrong. Nothing gets past us. You’ll die for- ah! Stop it!”

Suddenly, I was free. I scrambled to my feet, backing away from the guard, who was swatting erratically around his face, clumsily trying to hit the grey blur that was mobbing him. Behind him, Eda came flying back towards me, body flat against her staff as she pushed for speed, teeth bared in a vengeful snarl. Owlbert hit the back of the guard’s head squarely, sending the man soaring gracefully through the air, only to land face-first in the dump, a spray of items erupting upwards at his impart.

Eda pulled to swinging stop beside me, her snarl fading as regret and concern overtook her features. “I’m so sorry, Luz. That damned hallway is so small, I couldn’t get turned around fast enough. Are you okay?”

I slowly nodded my head, my body trembling with nerves and adrenaline. “Ye-yeah,” I managed to stammer. “I’m alright. The palisman saved me.” As if I summoned him, the hawk landed on my shoulder, making me jump at the sudden noise and weight. I reached up slowly, gently petting his little head with a finger. “Thanks, carino,” I said softly, making him peep in response. I turned back to Eda, frowning. “That guard said he knew we were here. How could he have known that?”

Eda furrowed her eyebrows, thinking for a moment before slapping her forehead with a hand. “Oh, I’m so stupid. I cast that spell to heal you, it would have set off an alarm that told them exactly where we were. We gotta get out of here right now. This place will be swarming with those uptight assholes soon.”

I nodded, stiffly getting onto the staff behind her. Glancing at the bird on my shoulder, I said, “Hang on tight.” He peeped again, his talons digging into my skin, making me wince. Eda gave Owlbert a tap, and then we were off; flying swiftly through the maze of corridors, each turn a nauseatingly rapid change in direction. Every time we passed a guard, Eda blasted them with spells as we flew over, unwilling to have one of us pulled off again.

The walk that had taken us upwards of twenty minutes now flew by; the trapdoor coming into view after only a couple minutes. Eda turned sharply upright, barely straightening the staff in time as we hurled through the door, climbing a hundred feet in elevation before Eda finally leveled out her staff, slowing to half of the headlong speed we had been going. I let out a breath of relief, loosening my hands’ death grip on the staff and letting my trembling arms relax, aching from holding my body in place.

The hawk took off from my shoulder with a few loud flaps of his wings, steadying out to gliding along beside us. I marveled at him for a moment, the turned towards the horizon, where the sun was just starting to surface from the sea, its golden rays turning the dark sky vibrant with whirling shades of purple and orange. I suppressed a yawn, exhaustion crashing over me all at once.

After a few sleepy minutes, we descended into a dark forest, Owlbert slowing as we neared the yawning, black mouth of a cave. Once he came to a full stop, I gracelessly hopped off the staff, stumbling as I almost pitched onto my face before straightening. The hawk landed heavily on my shoulder and Eda came up to stand beside me, cupping her hands over her mouth and calling into the void.

“Bat Queen! It’s Edalyn Clawthorne. I need to speak with you, please.”

There was a long moment of silence, made longer by my tired mind. Then the sound of flapping resounded from the cave, and out flew the biggest bat I had ever seen. She was at least eight feet tall, and looked like a pale, human head with legs and purple wings, her black hair stringy with grease.

“Hello, Eda,” she spoke in a low, monotone voice. “What do you need?”

Eda gestured towards the hawk on my shoulder. “We found this palisman abandoned in the Conformitorium’s dump. Can you take care of him?”

The hawk flew off my shoulder, winging to the Bat Queen before dropping to the ground in front of her, chattering in a mix of peeps and screeches. This went on for a minute before he fell silent, the Bat Queen turning back to us with a sigh.

“ _She_ says her name is Tenebris. And she likes you for some reason, human.”

Tenebris flew back to my shoulder, running her beak my short hair. I smiled, scratching her chest lightly.

The Bat Queen continued, “if you are willing to take responsibility for her wellbeing, she would like to go with you, and be your palisman.”

My heart skipped a beat, and excitement began to stream through me. I whipped my head to the side to look at the hawk, my eyes wide. “Really?! You’d do that?”

Tenebris nodded, her striking yellow eyes somber. She peeped again and wiped her beak along my face, making me laugh.

I turned back to the Bat Queen, nodding vigorously. “Yes! I promise I’ll take very good care of her.”

The Bat Queen bared her teeth, snarling noiselessly at me. “Very well,” she said, barely restrained aggression in her voice as she took a threatening step towards me, “but if I catch word that you’re abusing her in any way, I will tear you limb from limb and feed you alive to my babies.” She eyed me for another moment, then turned and flew back into her cave, the unbroken blackness quickly swallowing her.

I turned to Eda, my eyes wide. “She seems nice,” I remarked shakily.

Eda shook her head with a chuckle, reaching around Tenebris to ruffle my hair gently. “That _was_ her being nice. Now c’mon, let’s get home. You look dead on your feet.”

We got back on Eda’s staff, rising up past the constraining trees and into the early morning sky. I grinned happily as I watched the hawk glide in loops around us. I laughed suddenly, making Eda glance back. “I can’t believe I learned magic _and_ got a palisman all in one night!”

Eda chuckled, shaking her head lightly. “I can’t either, really. You’re a witch now!”

I leaned back a bit, grinning stupidly at the rolling forest below. “I’m a witch,” I repeated softly, my heart full of glee. “A real witch.”


	6. A Human and a Witch enter the Market

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, I'm super busy right now. Anyways, enjoy!

“But Eddddaaaa,” I whined pitifully, pouting as I tried to convince the stubborn witch.

“Luz, no!” she snapped back, exasperated, “Do you know how expensive scrolls are? I am _not_ going to bankrupt myself just so that you can chat with your friends!”

“So, get me cheap one!” I pleaded, “What if I get lost? Or hurt? Or _die_! You’d be sitting here,” I gestured to the table where Eda sat, “wondering, ‘where’s Luz? What could have possibly happened to my beloved kid?.'” I postured, dramatically acting out the scene, “and then you’d find my decaying, maggot-ridden corpse after months of searching, and cry out, ‘Oh! Woe to me, having lost my dearest Luz. She was so young and full of life! If only I had gotten a scroll as she asked…’” I fell on my knees in front of Eda, my arms raised beseechingly as I noiselessly wailed future-Eda’s grief.

There was a loud flap of wings, then Tenebris landed on my shoulder, peeping lightly in concern as she tried to soothe me. After a moment her head snapped forward to glare at Eda, silently scolding the witch for upsetting me.

Eda rolled her eyes, then stood, throwing up her hands in defeat. “Fine! But only because I’m sick of all… this,” she waved a hand disgustedly in my direction. "And we’re getting the cheapest one available, I don’t care if it already has one foot in the grave; you’re dealing with it.”

I quickly stood, dropping my dramatic veneer and grinning at Eda. “Thank you!!” I squealed, rushing to give her a hug, making Tenebris take off with a protesting squawk.

Eda stiffened as my arms closed around her, allowing the hug to last for a couple moments before shoving me away. “Yeah, yeah,” she muttered, “you’re welcome. Now go away.”

I cleared my throat, clasping my hands behind my back and slowly rocking on my heels. “Eda,” I implored, “Wouldn’t you like to go now? After all, it would be best to get this done as soon as possible. You never know what horrors may befall me…”

She groaned, scowling at me like the grumpy owl she was. Wordlessly, she stomped around me and towards the door, violently throwing it open, making me wince as it banged against the wall.

“Thank you!” I called brightly after her, quickly following. I paused in the doorway, looking back over my shoulder and checking my pockets to make sure I had my paper and pen. “King? Tenebris? Eda and I are going to the market. Want to come?”

King didn’t even bother to look up from where he was napping on the couch, but my hawk gracelessly hopped into the air, swooping above me and out the door. Closing the door, I got on Eda’s staff behind her, holding on tightly as we took off.

We landed in the market after a few minutes, Eda marching off as soon as her feet touched the ground. I rolled my eyes at the grouchy witch, Tenebris landing on my shoulder as I walked after her, moving quickly in order to catch up. Drawing level with her, I looked around curiously, my eyes flitting from stall to stall as we navigated the disordered chaos that was the market.

A bright poster caught my eye, and I slowed, grabbing onto one of Eda’s feathered arms and pulling her to a stop to point it out excitedly. “Eda, look! There’s a wanted poster of me!” Freshly printed, it showed me standing smugly in the foreground, Tenebris on my shoulders with her wings spread menacingly. At the bottom it read, “Human of the Owl Lady.”

Eda studied it briefly before looking down at me, beaming with pride as she ruffled my hair fondly. “Great job, Luz! You’re officially a criminal of the Boiling Isles.” She reached up, carefully peeling the poster off the wall before rolling it up and putting it in her hair. “We’ll hang it up right next to mine at home.” I grinned up at her happily.

We set off again, Eda now in a much better mood as we continued through the market. Finally, we arrived at a stand scattered with stacks of rolled-up scrolls, each with a price tag pointed out towards onlookers. Eda came to a stop in front of it, scanning the selection with eyes narrowed in thought.

The shopkeeper, a stout, balding witch with long tusks protruding from his mouth, cleared his throat. “Is there a particular scroll you are looking for?” he asked Eda in a thin, reedy voice.

She glanced up, examining him for a moment before returning to her search. “No,” she said shortly, pausing for a moment before returning her attention to the witch. “Actually, what do you have for used scrolls?”

He drew a spell circle, causing several scrolls to lift into the air, each hovering a few inches off the table.

Eda looked over them, muttering slightly under her breath as she debated with herself. A minute went by, then two. I started to shift impatiently, but the shopkeeper stood still, his face perfectly neutral as he waited for Eda to make a decision. Another couple minutes passed by before Eda finally nodded, pointing towards one the floating scrolls. “I’ll take this one.”

He nodded, floating it towards himself as the other scrolls dropped back onto the table. “Excellent choice. That’ll be 80 snails.”

Eda counted out the money, her expression pained as she handed it over in exchange for the scroll. She turned to me with a huff, tossing me the scroll, which I frantically fumbled to catch. “There you go kiddo,” she grumbled, “don’t break it, ‘cause that’s the only one I’m ever buying for you.”

“Thank you, Eda!!” I crowed, struggling to unravel the scroll. I got it at last, the screen lighting up as I opened it. I blinked in bafflement at the unfamiliar interface. “Umm,” I began, looking up at Eda, “how does this work?”

Eda shrugged. “I dunno. I’ve never bothered getting one of those things before. You’ll just have to figure it out.” She spun around and started back the way we had came, fluidly slipping her way through the crowds.

I stood there for a moment, trying to get it to work before giving up and rolling it back up, shoving it in my pocket and running after Eda, Tenebris taking off to soar above me. I caught up quickly, and we walked silently back towards the empty space reserved for staff takeoff and landing.

“Hey, you there! Halt! In the name of the emperor, halt!”

We froze, turning as one to find two members of the Emperor’s Coven walking quickly towards us, their glinting, beaked helmets revealing nothing of their intent. Eda shifted, positioning herself partly in front of me, her staff planted diagonal on the paved ground as she held the top away from herself, clearly preparing for a fight.

They slowed their approach, their stances lowering to a near crouch as their arms raised, readying to protect themselves against the defensive witch. “Owl Lady,” came a feminine voice, though I couldn’t tell which figure had spoken, “we are not here for you, stand down. That human is wanted for two accounts of robbery against the Emperor himself. You will turn her over to face Imperial justice.”

My breath caught in my throat, dread seeping through me. Eda didn’t respond, her only reaction was to bare her teeth in a silent snarl, staring them down threateningly. Above us, Tenebris circled, spiraling lower and lower, her piercing eyes fixated on the guards.

“Eda…?” I murmured shakily, shrinking behind her. They were only twenty feet away now, and steadily closing the distance. Tenebris screeched her anger shrilly, making the guards flinch and glance up. That’s when Eda struck. Twirling her staff, she took a step forward, grounding herself as she opened the spell circle created by the staff, sending thin shards of ice firing towards the distracted pair, whistling through the air as they dipped to knee level.

The sound caught their attention, their beaks snapping back down to focus on Eda. Then they caught sight of the ice, and one of them froze, the whites of their eyes in stark contrast against the silver of the mask. A mere second later, the ice tore through them, causing a keening scream to rise from the victim as their legs were peppered with holes, blood shooting out the other side and painting the cobblestone. They collapsed in a bloody heap, the pained cry reaching a new pitch as their legs hit the ground with a _crack_ , marking the exact moment their kneecaps gave way under the stress and shattered.

The other guard, however, had reacted faster and jumped out of the way, rising quickly and charging towards us, already drawing circle after circle as she pounded Eda with attacks with one hand, the other summoning large, goopy humanoids that lumbered towards us, protecting the witch from Eda’s counterattacks and forcing the snarling Owl Lady to divide her attention. More guards began to materialize out of the dispersing crowds, shouting as they moved to help the beaked witch.

“Luz!” Eda ground out through clenched teeth, blocking a particularly lethal spell with a twirl of her staff, “Run! Meet me at home. _GO!_ ”

I remained frozen for another awful moment, horror and terror stopping my legs. Then the adrenaline kicked in, and I spun around, taking off at a headlong run as I tried to escape unscathed. Tenebris swooped down in front of me, guiding me towards the edge of town.

The forest came into view, the dense trees rapidly growing taller as I drew near. Suddenly, I felt heat on my neck, accompanied by a deathly crackling. My heart leapt to my throat in renewed terror, and I threw myself toward, slamming hard into the ground as Tenebris shot upwards, a purple fireball crashing into the spot I had just been. I recovered quickly, rolling over and heaving myself shakily to my weary feet. Behind me ran a guard, snarling curses as Tenebris mobbed them; viciously raking and biting at the seething witch, their once-pristine uniform getting torn to shreds and stained as blood slowly soaked through the fraying fabric. Still, they kept on running towards me, holding a hand close to their body to draw a trembling circle as the other swatted unsuccessfully at the screeching hawk.

I quickly spun back to the forest, staggering as I resumed my desperate run. I darted through the trees, pulling sudden, sharp turns in an attempt to dislodge my follower. My breath came in rasping gasps as I struggled to pull oxygen into my pleading lungs, unwilling to slow to catch my breath. The witch behind me sounded like they were in even worse shape, their fast, heavy breathing echoing around me, enunciated every so often by sharp gasps of pain whenever Tenebris struck a particularly soft spot.

 _Okay_ , I thought, trying to get my fear-fogged mind to work, _how do I lose an angry witch?_ Through a gap in the dense trees, I glimpsed a yawning stretch of blackness. I turned abruptly, nearly falling as my feet skidded over the pine-coated earth. I slid a few paces, eventually righting myself and taking off again, throwing myself towards the dark, pitted cave I had seen. Behind me, branches snapped as the guard mimicked my sudden turn.

I dove into the cave, frantically windmilling my arms through the air to keep my balance on the sudden downhill. After a few heart-stopping moments, I hit level ground again, slowing to a walk as I carefully toed my way through the pitch-black cavern, straining my ears for any sound from the witch. Suddenly, my head slammed into a wall of hard rock, knocking me flat on my ass with a strangled yelp.

I sat up quickly, breathing shallowly as I listened for movement in the dark. After a minute of silence, broken only by the sound of dripping water, I dug into my pocket, pulling out the paper and pen. Fixing an image of the light glyph in my mind, I struggled to draw it accurately, blindly running the pen over the paper.

After many attempts, I finally got it, the sudden light making me hiss sharply in pain and close my eyes. Opening them again cautiously, I waited until it didn’t burn my retinas before looking around, scanning the dimly lit cave for another exit, as well as for my faithful pursuer. There was nothing. I stood, wandering deeper into the dark. Unease crept in, pushing out my lingering terror and staking its own claim on my mind. It was a certain kind of unease, the kind of trepidation passed down thousands of generations, originating from the basest animal instinct; the fear of unbroken darkness and what it holds.

I shivered, the thick, damp air doing nothing to ease my fraying nerves. I shuffled along, my tiny sphere of light only lighting a foot in each direction. In the distance, I heard the whistling of air moving. I angled myself towards it, hoping it would lead me to an exit. Any exit, at this point. I was so thoroughly lost that I’d rather face the guard again than die trapped in a cave.

Something massive materialized out of the dark in front of me, and I stumbled to a stop just in time. Guiding my light over it, I inhaled sharply in shock and fear, my heart skipping a few beats before surging into a rapid rhythm. In front of me lay a sleeping demon, a black beast even darker than the cave, more resembling a thankless void than a living creature. At least ten feet tall, its back brushed against the ceiling with every breath it took, a whistling pitch harolding its exhales.

I lost a few moments standing there, shaking like a leaf as my wide eyes were stuck on the demon. I shook my head sharply, pulling myself out of the trance and backing away carefully. Once I had gained a bit of distance, I turned, walking only a few paces before the beaked helmet of the guard came into view, the shiny metal reflecting my dim light. I froze, completely caught off guard. Then I raised my hands, frantically gesturing for them to be quiet. They watched me for a moment, and I noticed narrowed, golden eyes behind the mask, calculating my next move.

Hope rose in me that we’d make it out of the cavern alive, only to be quickly squashed as the witch drew a spell circle, violently blasting me back towards the slumbering beast. I rose to my feet just in time to jump out of the way of another bright, purple fireball, the heat licking hungrily at my legs as I dove away. I turned back to watch in growing horror as it slammed right into the demon, searing a large, purple burn into its side. It woke with a screaming roar, making me cringe fearfully and duck out of its sight. There I slumped against the cave wall, subconscious tears trailing down my face as I heard it give chase to the offending witch, still screaming in its pained rage.

I sat there for a moment, trying to gather my wits and think of something to do. A distant scream made me flinch, and I stood, running back through the cave to save the witch from getting eaten alive. _Trying to kill me or not_ , I thought grimly, _no one deserves that_. After a few tense moments, I finally burst from the cave, the bright daylight blinding me. I came to a stop, blinking my watering eyes rapidly to get them to adjust faster. There was a flapping of wings, then a weight landed on my shoulder, peeping lightly in worry.

“I’m alright,” I told Tenebris somberly, “but we need to help that witch, or else they won’t be.”

I could finally see, though the sight in front of me made me wish I was still blinded. The demon was even more intimidating in the sunlight; it had six thick legs, and its opaque pelt appeared to be made of shadows; the fur writhing against the light, giving it the same movement as wind cutting trails through tall grass. Only thirty feet away, it crouched with its back to me, pinning something between its front paws, a continuous, thunder-like growl rumbling from its chest.

That sight kicked me into motion. I ran forward, Tenebris flying in front as she angled to attack the beast’s head. I grabbed my paper as I went, quickly drawing as big of a light glyph as I could on the small page, finishing just in time to slam it against the demon’s haunch. There was a low sizzle, and when I pulled back my hand there was a charred gap in its fur, an angry, golden light glyph branded into the skin underneath. It roared in fury, releasing its catch to swipe at Tenebris, who quickly flew out of reach. Apparently it blamed my assault on the poor hawk, because it followed, leaping up to catch her between its front paws, only for Tenebris to swoop away at the last second. She shot away from us, leading the demon deeper into the forest.

I cupped my hands over my mouth, calling after my palisman, “I’ll meet you back at the Owl House. Don’t die!”

A faint screech reached my ears in response, and I nodded to myself, already walking over to the now-visible witch, who had been the thing trapped under its claws. I cleared my throat as I neared the guard, not wanting to scare them. “Hey, are you okay? That was quite a nasty hit you took,” I began, crouching down beside the witch, who was lying flat on the ground, their cracked helmet thrown to the side as they rubbed their face, groaning.

“Hello?” I said again, a little concerned, “can you hear me? I-”

“ _Yes!_ ” the witch exclaimed furiously, throwing her hands down from her face to glare at me, revealing a fine, pale face with angry golden eyes and teal hair, ears pinned down. “Yes, I’m alright. Now will you _please_ shut the fuck up?!”

I took a surprised step back, my mouth dropping as I recognized her. “It’s you!” I stated, unable to think of anything else. “From the outpost! Ay dios mio, I’m sorry I stole from you!”

She stood up suddenly, moving quite fluidly for someone who was just on the brink of death. She marched into my space, getting in my face as she poked a finger into my chest, following me as I flinched and stumbled back. My dark brown eyes darted between her shining golden ones, her scowling face only inches from mine. “Did I not just say to shut up?! I _meant_ it human. I have no problems killing you,” she snarled viciously, leaning further towards me. “Really, after the day I’ve just had, I might even enjoy it.”

My heart stopped, fear trying to overwhelm my senses, only for fury to rapidly build, taking its place. I shoved her hand away from me, pushing her back a step so that I could think. A scowl to rival hers grew on my face, and my eyes bored into hers, making her eyes widen slightly. “No,” I said coldly, “you attacked me first. And then I saved your life after you nearly got both of us killed. If _anyone_ gets to be mad, it’s me. So step off, _witch_.”

Surprisingly, she did, granting me a brief sense of victory before she snatched it all away with a single spell circle. I yelped as my feet left the ground, trying in vain to return to earth. Without another word she spun and walked off through the trees, towing me along behind her like I was the most realistic stringless human balloon ever.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?” I called out indignantly, still flailing my limbs around wildly, trying to reengage gravity.

“Arresting you,” came the monotone reply, the witch not bothering to looking back.

“Well, you’re going the wrong way then. Bonesburough’s back the other way.”

She spun to face me; teeth bared in a snarl. “You think I don’t know that?” she hissed, “I’m not taking you there, since you and the Owl Lady can clearly break into the Conformitorium whenever you want.” She closed her eyes, sighing as if trying to calm herself. “No,” she continued, opening her eyes, her voice neutral once again, “I’m taking you somewhere I can watch over you until I report to the Emperor’s castle tomorrow morning.”

Stopping my struggles, I blinked. “Oh,” I said dumbly. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

She rolled her eyes in response, turning and pulling me along to our mystery destination.

“Soooo,” I began, crossing my legs and twiddling my thumbs, “any chance you’ll tell me where we’re going?”

“No.”

I frowned at her abruptness. “What about your name, then?”

“No.”

I rolled my eyes with a huff, perking up quickly and smiling at her back. “Okay, that’s fine! I’m just gonna call you Butthead, then!”

There was a long pause, then just as I thought she wasn’t going to respond, she spoke up. “It’s Amity. Now for titan’s sake, shut up!”

I chuckled. “Absolutely not, Amity! That’s the one thing I do not do. I’m Luz, by the way! Eda once said I talk more than Hooty, which I _personally_ don’t think is possible. And honestly the fact that she would even _compare_ me to Hooty hurts. I swear, he’s the most anno-”

Amity stopped abruptly, cutting off my ramble with a raised hand. She took a deep breath, then turned to face me, her expression perfectly blank with only her twitching ears to betray her concealed annoyance. “Human. If you don’t stop your chattering, we could very well be demon chow before we make it to my house-”

“Ha!” I crowed, “So we’re going to your house then?”

“-so,” she continued, ignoring my outburst, “I am gonna need you to stop talking.” Amity hesitated, letting out a low sigh before resuming. “If I let you walk beside me, will you be quiet?”

I thought it over, tapping my chin. “Hmmm…” I pondered, making Amity’s face contort into a scowl. I laughed, raising my hands in defeat. “Alright, fine! But,” I crossed my arms smugly, looking down at the annoyed witch as I fought to keep a smile off my face, “you have to call me Luz, not human.”

Amity nodded immediately. “Deal.” She snapped her fingers, and I fell down to the ground, letting out a little shriek of surprise.

Hopping to my feet, I dusted off my clothes, straightening after a moment and catching Amity’s eye. I walked jauntily towards her, swinging my arms and smiling at the disgruntled witch.

She muttered something under her breath, falling into pace beside me as she guided us through the trees. We walked in silence for a while, as requested, until Amity turned her head to face me, frowning.

“I don’t get it. You were so mad just fifteen minutes ago, and now you’re… happy? To be my prisoner? Why?”

I blinked slowly, taken off guard by the sudden question. Then I grinned, swinging in front of her and walking backwards so that I was facing the witch. Amity eyes narrowed at this sudden change, and although she kept walking, her eyes were wary as she tried to figure out what I was up too. “Well, I’ve lived with Eda for like, a week now, I think? She uses magic against me at least twice a day. It’s a miracle I haven’t died yet! Anyways, what I mean is that I’m used to it, it doesn’t faze me in the slightest.”

A small, exasperated smile appeared on Amity’s face, her amused eyes silently letting me know that I was an idiot. I paused, unable to get my thoughts in order, the only thing going through my mind was _prettywitchprettywitch…say something estupido!_ I shook myself out of my head, deciding to push my luck with Amity. “And, I guess you just swept me of my feet,” I told her in a low, flirty voice, shooting her finger guns with a wink.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she studied me intensely, holding my gaze for a few still moments before her eyes widened in realization. “Oh! You mean the spell. Yes, it did lift you off the ground. But that should have made you more angry at me, not less.”

I stumbled back a bit as I tried to process what she said. “Wait, what?” Amity frowned again, opening her mouth to speak. Then my foot hit a rock, and I went sprawling backwards, landing hard on the forest floor. I laid there for a moment, throwing an arm over my eyes and letting out a huge sigh of disappointment at my clumsiness.

A shadow blocked out the little bit of light that made it past my arm, making me move it slightly off my eyes so that I could see. Amity stood above me, fighting back an smile as she offered down a hand. I reached up and grasped her wrist, letting the taller witch pull me to my feet with a faint huff of effort.

She let go as soon as I was upright, releasing my hand as if it were burning her. Taking a step back, she sighed, rubbing her eyes wearily. “Come on,” she muttered, setting off again, “let’s just get this over with. The sooner I never have to see you again, the better.”

I quickly followed, remaining quiet as I observed Amity out of the corner of my eye, studying her curiously. _She really is beautiful_ , I thought wistfully to myself, tripping over another rock in my distraction. This time, I managed to catch myself, instinctively grabbing onto Amity’s arm to regain my dubious balance. She tensed, flinching away from the contact.

“Sorry,” I murmured, removing my hand.

Amity nodded shortly, glancing around the forest as if searching for an escape. Her eyes stopped on something, and she exhaled slowly in relief. “We’re here.” She turned to glare at me, “So be quiet and do whatever I say.”

I gave her a half-assed salute in response, making her eyes narrow in annoyance before she turned and walked away. I followed close behind her as she exited the forest and walked towards a large manor perched on a hill. We climbed up to the door, Amity cracking it open carefully and peeking inside. After a moment, she opened it wider, gesturing for me to enter.

I did, my jaw dropping in awe as I emerged into a grand foyer; it was void of furniture except for a sitting area positioned at the base of a wide staircase that curled up the far wall, a long, regal rug stretching the length of the room and the pristine, white walls trimmed with gold. I spun back to facing Amity, who wore a smug look at my reaction. “You _live_ like this?!” I hissed lowly, reluctant to disturb the oppressive silence of the house, “this place is a fucking nightmare! I’d accidentally ruin that fancy rug in like, one day tops.”

Her self-important look dropped, eyes narrowing into a glare as her ears pinned down angrily. She opened her mouth to retort with what would no doubt be a scathing and hurtful rebuttal, but was cut off by a loud voice from the other end of the hall.

“Hiiii Mittens!”

Her jaw snapped closed, her glare intensifying as it swiveled over my shoulder to stare down newcomer. “Oh great,” she muttered irately.

I turned back around to see two witches bounding down the staircase. They looked exactly like Amity, except taller and with dark green hair. Naturally, they were both hot. Which is totally unfair.

“Wow, you look awful! Who’s this?” asked the leading witch, her golden eyes appraising me curiously, “she’s cute!”

“Mittens!” cried the other one, gesturing towards me excitedly, “did you finally get a girlfriend! Took you long enough!”

Heat rose to my cheeks, and I struggled to form a cohesive thought as Amity shoved past me, trembling with rage.

“ _NO!"_ She yelled, waving her hands around angrily, “just… no!” She took a moment to calm herself, ignoring the snickering witches. “She’s a criminal, I arrested her. It’s not safe to keep her at the Conformitorium, so I brought her here to guard until my shift tomorrow.” She turned towards me, her expression peeved as she waved a hand over her shoulder. “Luz, these are my brother and sister, Emira and Edric.”

I cleared my throat and offered them an awkward little wave. “Hi.”

They waved back, matching grins on their faces.

Amity frowned, swinging back around to face her sibling. “Are mom and dad home?” She asked worriedly.

The twins shook their heads in unison, Edric responding, “Nope! Mom’s at work, and dad had to go to a meeting.”

Amity’s shoulders slumped in relief. “Good. The last thing I wanted to do was explain this,” she gestured to me, “to them. Mom would have been furious.”

Emira winced, chuckling uneasily. “Yeah, no kidding. Better hide her before they get home.”

Amity nodded, drawing a spell circle in the air before marching off towards the staircase. I stifled a surprised shriek as my feet left the ground, my body once again floating along behind Amity.

“Really?” I complained, crossing my arms with a pout, “this seems completely unnecessary!”

She didn’t respond, making me huff and roll my eyes. Amused laughter rang from the witches behind us.

Amity took us up the stairs and down a long hallway lined with stern-faced portraits, candles flickering in the spaces in between, filling the narrow passage with soft light. We went through a door at the end of the hall, entering a large bedroom.

I looked around curiously. Compared to the rest of the extravagant house, this room was downright plain. There was a small, four-poster bed in one corner, a nightstand near the head and a dark, wooden dresser at the foot. In another adjacent corner, there was a desk that matched the bed and dresser in color and style. A walk-in closet filled the wall space between. The middle of the carpeted floor was empty, leaving plenty of room to walk around. The only light in the room came in from a closed stained glass window, the elegant, white curtains drawn open.

Amity guided me to the middle of the room, releasing the spell on me with a snap of her fingers. I fell gracefully to the floor, hissing lowly as my head slammed against the carpet. I sat up, rubbing my head and glaring at the witch.

“Um, ow?!” I protested, throwing my hands out in a clear _what-the-fuck_ gesture.

Amity smirked, amusement rolling in her eyes at my pain. Raising a hand, she drew another spell circle, making me tense in wary preparation. Pink light rose around me, the faint lines weaving in an interlocking pattern as they rose up to the high ceiling. In moments, I was encased in a circular prison of light a mere six feet in diameter. I pushed on it curiously, the wall was warm and smooth to the touch. I rammed a shoulder against it, but the light remained stubbornly unyielding, leaving me trapped in its woven cell.

With a groan, I slid down the wall, drawing up my knees and leaning my head back, pouting at Amity. “You couldn’t have done this on the bed?” I asked her grumpily, “it would have been much more comfortable.”

She rolled her eyes at my childish moping. “Nope,” she shook her head, “that’s my bed. Human pests go on the floor.”

I scrunched up my nose, narrowing my eyes in a half-hearted glare. “I resent that statement.”

“Represent it, too,” she muttered, turning and walking back out the door.

“Hey!” I called after her, craning my neck in a futile attempt to keep her in my line of sight, “where are you going?” There was no response except the far-off sound of a slamming door. I leaned my head on my knees with a sigh, already bored.

Minutes went by slowly, and I found myself dozing off on the cold floor, exhaustion from my panicked run swamping my mind and closing my eyes.

“Hey there, human!”

I flinched at the sudden voice, my head shooting up to glance around wildly. Standing in front of me were the twins, tinted a flattering pink shade by my cage.

I eyed them warily, trying to control my racing heart. “Hi…?”

Emira cleared her throat, elbowing Edric in the ribs. “Sorry for this loat startling you. He has _no_ manners.”

Edric squawked at the abuse, poking his sister sharply in revenge. “Excuse me,” he protested primely, “if anyone here’s a loat, it’s you, dingus!”

Emira gasped in hurt, placing a hand against her chest and the other on her forehead, miming a swoon. “Your words cut deep,” she whispered sadly, “almost as deep as how far down your intelligence is buried.”

I watched in silent amusement as their argument rapidly deteriorated into them making increasingly stupid faces at each other, using magic to further contort their features in a ferocious battle for dominance.

Eventually, Edric caved, throwing up his hands in defeat. “Fine!” he exclaimed exasperatedly, “you win. Now _please_ fix your face.”

Emira fist-pumped her victory with a raucous laugh, releasing the spell that had been distorting her face into an unfamiliar male witch making kissing motions towards Edric. She turned to face me with a smile, ignoring her sulking brother. “Anyways,” she said cheerfully, “Mittens is cleaning herself up, and asked us to watch you while she was gone.”

I nodded slowly, standing up stiffly and stretching out my limbs. “So,” I began conversationally, “any chance of you guys letting me out of here?” They stiffened, glancing at each other uneasily, and I quickly continued. “Out of this bubble, I mean. Not, like, letting me go.” I chuckled sheepishly, rubbing my arms. “It’s really cold on the floor.”

They looked at each other again, silently debating whether or not they should grant my request. As one, they shrugged, turning back to face me with matching grins. “Sure!” Edric said whilst drawing a blue spell circle, “we don’t really care, today’s pretty boring. Mittens yelling at us would liven things up a bit.”

The light around me dissolved, leaving me free to wander the room. “Thanks!” I said with a grin, already moving towards the bed. I sat down, leaning back against the headboard and stretching out my cramped legs with a relaxed sigh, closing my eyes peacefully. “That’s much better. You’d think a carpeted floor would be comfy, but it’s really not.” The bed shifted under me, and I peeked open my eyes to see Emira and Edric sitting at the foot of the bed, facing me expectantly.

“We’ve never seen a real human before,” Edric said eagerly, “much less a _criminal_ human. What’re you doing here?”

I chuckled, grabbing a pillow next to me and holding it on my lap. “It was very unexpected,” I admitted, “kind of a life-or-death decision, really.” I gave them a brief summary of my coming to the Isles, including an awkward retelling of me stealing from Amity. By the end, the twins were practically howling with laughter, apparently finding my many near-death experiences hilarious.

“That’s amazing!” Emira gasped out, still chuckling faintly, “no wonder Mittens has it out for you!” Beside her, Edric was weezing for breath, still not over Amity’s dumbfounded expression when she saw me.

I smiled weakly, a little embarrassed by their glee. “Yeah… she was _not_ pleased. Eda was thrilled though; she loves that sword.”

Edric leaned forward excitedly, his eyes shining with mirth. “I can’t believe you live with the Owl Lady! That’s so cool, she’s great!”

I blinked, a little astonished by his reaction. “You like her?” I asked in puzzlement, “I thought every witch was scared of her?”

Emira shrugged nonchalantly. “Mittens has us stop by her stand at least once a week,” she explained, “for books and stuff, since she’d get in trouble with her boss if she got caught chatting with the Owl Lady. We’ve been doing it for years now, so she doesn’t mind us anymore.”

“Ah,” I said knowingly, “that makes sense, Eda loves her costumers.” I caught sight of movement over Edric’s shoulder and glanced up to see Amity appear in the doorway, slowing in surprise when she locked eyes with me. In the time she had been gone, Amity had mended all the little cuts and holes caused by Tenebris, and had changed into non-ruined clothes: a comfy-looking pair of purple leggings and a black long sleeve shirt. I felt an uncomfortable sense of déjà vu as her eyes narrowed with a scowl, reminding me of the first time we had met.

“Why is Luz on my bed?” She snapped, storming into the room.

The twins must have had some magical Amity-detector, because they didn’t look even remotely surprised at her sudden appearance, instead turning around to grin at her happily.

“The floor was cold!” Edric chirped, “we just wanted your poor guest to be as comfortable as possible!”

“Yeah, Mittens!” Emira chimed in, “you really need to be more considerate to your friends!”

I could almost see steam rising from Amity’s ears as her face reddened in anger. “She’s _not_ my friend,” she snapped, taking a moment to glare at me before refocusing on her siblings, “nor my guest. Luz is a _prisoner_ here! It doesn’t matter if she’s comfortable or not! Now get out!!”

“Ouch,” I muttered, slightly hurt by the venom in Amity’s voice.

Despite their sister’s wrath, the twins merely laughed at her. “Sorry Mittens!” they said as one, standing and walking out the door, ruffling Amity’s hair as they passed. Amity growled insults under her breath, slamming the door behind them before facing me.

The witch glowered at me, ears twitching faintly in her irritation. I shrunk down in her bed, trying to make myself less of a target and counting on the fact that she wouldn’t want to torch her own bed, no matter how furious she was with me. After a few tense moments, dropped eye contact with me, closing her eyes with a long sigh as she tried to rein in her temper. I remained where I was, watching her warily.

Amity walked towards me, making me tense up, ready to bolt at a second’s notice. But instead of attacking me, she flopped down face-first onto the bed beside me. I finally relaxed; confident she wouldn’t order me to move.

“They’re so annoying,” she groaned into the blankets, shifting a bit as she got comfortable.

“I thought they were quite nice,” I murmured lowly, smiling down softly at the teal-haired witch.

“You would,” came her muffled reply.

“So…” I began, struggling to keep the humor out of my voice as I nudged her leg with a foot, “Mittens, huh?”

Amity lifted up her head, propping it up on her arms so that she could glare at me, her golden eyes promising my death. “Don’t you _ever_ call me that,” she hissed lowly.

“No promises!” I chirped, smirking down at her gleefully, “Since you asserted that we are not friends, I don’t have to follow any of your wishes!”

Her glare diminished, and something flashed in her eyes, softening her expression as she gazed up at me. My heart skipped a beat, struggling to function properly at the foreign look in her eyes. Seconds stretched by like hours before Amity seemed to realize she was staring, her ears flattening in embarrassment as she abruptly jerked her eyes away from me, rolling onto her back to look at the white ceiling instead.

I chuckled lightly at her reaction, watching in amusement as she tilted back her head to glare at me, wrinkling her nose cutely.

“Stop that,” she grumbled, halfheartedly swatting my leg, “don’t make me kick you off my bed.”

I raised my hands in innocence, trying and failing to wipe the smile off my face. “No need for that,” I told the grumpy witch, “I’m behaving myself.”

Amity rolled her eyes with a huff, opening her mouth to tell me off, only to pause when the door swung open.

“Mittens!” called Edric, standing beside his twin in the doorway, “can we talk to you? It’s important.”

“Fine, but make it quick,” Amity sighed, standing and following them out into the hallway. She paused with one hand on the door, glancing over her shoulder at me. “Don’t move,” she ordered before slamming the door. Faint whispers reached my ears as they started talking, though it was too quiet to understand.

“Hmmm,” I pondered to myself, looking around, “Should I listen? ...No, I don’t think I will.” I hopped out of the bed, placing the pillow gently in my vacated spot before looking around the room for something to snoop through. I wandered over to the desk, opening the drawers and shuffling through their contents. Most of it was boring: pencil, paper, the occasional how-to book of magic, and other mundane objects.

On the last drawer, however, I hit the jackpot. On top were some notebooks, which I riffled through immediately, snickering at the pages upon pages of drawings, mostly of people and Amity herself. I set it aside, pulling out several more notebooks and adding them to the pile after a quick glance inside. Finally, I reached the bottom of the deep drawer, my eyes widening at what was uncovered.

“No way!” I murmured excitedly, pulling out the fourth Azura book. I skimmed through it, noting with growing glee that the margins were filled with writing and drawings, all in a neat, cramped style. The writing was all notes; deciphering meaning behind word choice and underlining sentences/scenes Amity had liked. I froze as the whispers outside grew into angry shouts. I couldn’t understand what was being said, so I tiptoed quietly to the door, clenching the book to my chest as I strained to listen, the voices now back down to their previous quiet level. I frowned, still unable to make out words from the hushed noises. Carefully, I put my head against the door, closing my eyes to listen better. Finally, I could understand the whispers.

“I don’t _care_ ,” hissed Amity, sounding very angry, “I need to take her in, it’s the only way!”

“It isn’t though!” snapped Emira, “the Owl Lady _will_ kill you if you turn in her kid.”

Edric cleared his throat. “Or, at the very least, we’ll be banned from her stand,” he added helpfully. “Plus, Luz is cool! We like her! You shouldn’t arrest people we like, that’s just rude.”

“Trust me,” Amity sighed, “I know. But it’s my life or my career. I’d rather turn in Luz than made mom and dad mad.” Her voice was sad now. “Can you even imagine what they would do to me?”

There was a pause, then Emira spoke up. “Alright, fine. I don’t like your decision, but we’ll support you in this.”

“Yeah, Mittens. We got your back,” Edric said, “and when the Owl Lady comes for you, we’ll all die together!”

There was a loud _smack!_ , followed by Edric complaining, “Ow!”

“Thanks guys,” Amity said, her voice wavering slightly, “I owe you one.”

It sounded as if they were wrapping up their discussion, as I quickly moved away from the door, heading back towards the desk. I got there just as the door opened, Amity stepping in and closing it firmly behind her.

She looked over at me, unsurprised to find me off the bed. “I told you not to move,” she scolded halfheartedly.

I grinned shakily, trying to look as if I hadn’t just been eavesdropping on their heartfelt condemnation of sending me to prison. “I know,” I began, “but look what I found!” I held out the book in my arms excitedly, showing her the cover. “I didn’t even know you guys had these here!”

Amity stomped over to me, red creeping its way down her cheeks from her ears. “Give me that!” she hissed, swiping it out of my hands. She shouldered past me, shoving the book back into its drawer and piling the notebooks in after, closing it with a decisive slam.

I laughed, returning to my spot of Amity’s bed. “Hey, no judgement here!” I told her after I got settled, cuddling the pillow to my chest again, “I _love_ those books! I can’t even count how many times I’ve read them, and Azura and Hecate are my favorite power couple!”

Amity frowned, slowly taking a seat on the other side of the bed, leaning against the headboard beside me. “’Power couple’?” she asked me perplexedly, “but they never got together, book six ended on them still being rivals.”

“They do in book eight!” I told her excitedly, “Have you not read it yet? No spoilers, but it’s awesome!”

Her eyes widened. “There’s more than six books?” she asked breathlessly.

“Yeah! Book Eight is the finale,” I said, leaning forward in my enthusiasm, “I have them all back at the Owl House…” Then I remembered what was going to happen the next morning and slumped dejectedly. “Oh, right,” I said morosely, staring glumly down at the pillow I held, “I guess maybe you can ask Eda for them whenever she forgives you… _if_ she forgives you.”

Amity stilled beside me, seemingly at a loss for what to say. “I-” she paused, clenching the blankets in her fists. “I am sorry, Luz. I really am. I wish I didn’t have to. But…”

I waited silently for her to continue, smoothing the fabric of the pillow to keep my hands busy. A minute went by, then two. I looked up then, meeting her regretful eyes as she stared at me, the small bed only leaving half a foot between us. She blinked, then shook her head slightly as if to clear it. Leaning away, she cleared her throat and put her hands on her lap, unclenching her fists and gazing down at her unfurled hands.

“Emperor Belos was not pleased that you stole the sword, and he issued me an ultimatum,” Amity continued, her voice wavering, “I have to bring him you, the thief, or the sword by the end of this week, so tomorrow, or I’m fired from the Coven.”

I frowned, “So why didn’t you take the sword instead of me? I feel like that makes more sense.”

Amity scoffed, “Not really. The sword is at the Owl House, I assume. That means it’s protected at all times by that awful house demon, not to mention the Owl Lady herself. Attacking it would be suicidal.” She glanced back at me. “You, on the other hand, leave the Owl House often. The plan was to surround you and Eda with guards at the market and arrest you in the chaos.” She chuckled lightly, shaking her head. “it didn’t work out exactly how I had imagined it, but I still got you in the end.” She hesitated, folding her arms across her stomach protectively. “I just… you’re not at all like I thought you would be.”

I took a second to absorb all that, trying to think of a solution that wouldn’t require me going to prison and probably receiving the death penalty. Moreover, I just felt bad for Amity; I had unintentional caused her a lot of pain. She still sat hunched over, as if to shield herself from all her troubles. Without any conscious decision, I leaned over and wrapped my arms around the miserable witch, hugging her tightly.

She immediately stiffened, her hands pressing against my chest, ready to shove me away. “Luz? What are you doing?” She muttered quietly, unease clear in her wary voice.

“It’s a hug,” I murmured back softly, “you looked like you needed one.”

Amity went still, her hands still pushing gently against me as she tried to figure out what to do.

“Give it a shot,” I encouraged, “I promise it’ll help.”

She hesitated, then slowly moved her hands around my back, leaning into me and laying her head on my neck. Her body was still rigid, however.

“It’s okay, Amity,” I whispered quietly, her ear twitching as I spoke, “just relax.”

Another couple seconds passed by, then Amity exhaled softly against my neck, relaxing into me as the tension left her body. “This is nice,” she mumbled, her arms tightening as she nestled her head into me.

I hummed an affirmation, thoroughly enjoying my unexpected hug with Amity. She smelled nice, and though I couldn’t pinpoint the exact smell, it reminded me of when I used to go camping with my mom, and we sat around the crackling fire making jokes and eating s’mores. I smiled at the memory, recall- _Wait just one second_ , I thought suddenly, my eyes widening, _I have the sword!_

“Amity, that’s it!” I exclaimed, pushing her back suddenly so that I could see her face, which was deer-in-the-headlights surprised at my sudden outburst. “I _have_ the sword! Let’s go get it!”

Her jaw dropped. “Of course! Why didn’t I think of that?” She hissed, slapping her forehead at the stupidity of it.

I laughed, my hands still on her shoulders as I shook her gently, giddy in my relief. “C’mon, let’s go!” I told her, grinning so big my cheeks hurt.

Amity smiled back at me, nodding quickly before dragging me out of her bed by my wrist, pulling me out the door and down the hall. She let go once we reached the stairs, and we pounded down them, eager to fix the kerfuffle we were in. Naturally, things had to go wrong.

Standing at the bottom of the staircase was an older witch, her lime green (an awful color, really) hair pined up neatly, a small frown set on her face as she glared at Amity disapprovingly, barely sparing me a glance.

“Amity Blight,” she snapped, causing Amity to freeze mid-step, “you know better to run down the stairs. Is that the human criminal you needed to capture?”

Amity nodded mutely, her posture perfect as she faced her mother.

“Very good,” said the lady primely, “but why is it not restrained? And what is it doing in my house?”

I frowned, already disliking her.

“Sorry, mother,” Amity said, her voice perfectly monotone as she turned to face me. Her eyes screamed apologizes as she drew a spell circle, purple lines binding my hands and feet as she did, loose enough so that I could move, but tight enough that I couldn’t escape. Amity faced forwards again, her hands clasped tightly behind her back. “Emira and Edric must have released her as I walked down the hall, as a joke of course. She is here because I judged that the Owl Lady would have her out of the Conformitorium in an hour if I had taken her there, so I brought her here instead. However, my Captain just sent me a message to take her there anyways, so I am going there now.”

Her mother watched her for a moment, eyes narrowed. Then she nodded in satisfaction. “Smart thinking. Now if it breaks out, the blame will fall on the Captain. Go on.” She gestured elegantly towards the door, then walked away, the clicking of her heels resonating in the vast room long after she left.

Amity marched forward, gesturing for me to follow without looking back to see if I would. I stumbled along behind her, muttering well-chosen curses; specifically targeting leg restraints and a certain lime-haired bitch. By the time Amity reached the door and turned back for me, I was only halfway across the foyer, hobbling pathetically as I tried to walk. A minute passed before I finally reached her, and by then I was scowling grumpily at the floor, my previous ecstasy long forgotten.

Amity already had the door open for me, so I shuffled my way out, stopping on the edge of the porch, refusing to brave the stairs while bound. I heard a sigh behind me, and the purple loops vanished, allowing me to stretch out my already cramped limbs.

Amity appeared beside me, gently grabbing my wrist and guiding me of the porch and down a gravel path winding towards the forest. “I’m so sorry about that,” she apologized, releasing my wrist to run her hand through her hair, wincing slightly as it was stopped by her ponytail. “I didn’t know she was home. If I had, we would have escaped out my window.”

I relaxed slightly, grateful that Amity had addressed the elephant frolicking in the meadow. “Your mom’s a bitch,” I told her matter-of-factly as I lengthened my stride, enjoying the returned freedom of movement.

Amity glanced at me in shock, letting out a disbelieving laugh.

I frowned at her, my brow furrowing. “You disagree?! She called me an ‘it!’” I protested, waving my hands around angrily.

She shook her head vehemently. “No! Sorry, you’re right. I’ve just never heard someone say it out loud before.” She smiled at me, amusement twinkling in her golden eyes.

“Really?” I wrinkled my nose. “That’s hard to believe. How old are you?”

“Eighteen.”

“Hey, me too!” I exclaimed. “But _eighteen_ _years_ and you’ve never heard anyone talk trash about your mom? That’s sad, ‘cause she totally deserves it.”

Amity laughed, her eyes crinkling with mirth. “Yeah, she does. I’m glad someone finally said something.”

I nodded, nudging her gently with an elbow. “Now you try it,” I prompted.

She blinked, confusion seeping into her eyes. “Try what?”

“Insulting your mom!” I said, “having to deal with her toxic bullshit everyday… I’d imagine there’s a lot of pent-up anger in you. Let it out! Say, ‘My mother’s a fucking bitch.’”

Amity hesitated, unsure. “My… My mother’s a fucking bitch,” she said slowly, a smile growing on her face as she finished. “My mother’s a fucking bitch!” she exclaimed, laughter ringing in her voice. She grinned at me, clearly pleased with herself.

I grinned back, opening my mouth to congratulate her just as my body slammed into something, cracking my face on it before flying backwards onto the ground. “Mierda!” I hissed in pain, cupping my throbbing nose as I glared at the tree that had materialized in my path. Warmth trickled through my fingers, and I drew back my hand to find blood coating my fingers. “Great,” I groaned, sitting up and tilting my head forward to prevent the blood from seeping down my throat, “Just great.” I watched as blood dripped from my face onto the ground in a steady rhythm, my eyes watering as I resisted the sneeze that was building.

“Ouch,” came Amity’s sympathetic voice from above me, “you okay?”

“I hit my nose pretty good,” I told her grouchily, “but other than that, yeah.”

I felt a cool hand rest on my shoulder, then warmth flooded through me, and the stream of blood trickled to a stop. I felt my nose cautiously, relief flooding through me when I could do so without pain. I grabbed Amity’s hand from my shoulder, using it as a crutch to pull myself upright. “Thanks,” I told her, smiling gratefully.

Her ears went down slightly as red bloomed from them, and she stepped away from me, tearing her eyes away from mine as she turned to stare into the forest. “No problem,” she said shakily, studying the trees.

I frowned in confusion, but shrugged off her odd behavior as an aftereffect of magic. “So, which way to the Owl House?”

Amity gestured into the trees she was eyeing. “It’s just straight this way. About a ten-minute walk, maybe?”

“Great!” I chirped, stepping around the tree I had run into. I set off towards the forest, Amity falling into step beside me, leaving a two-foot gap between us.

The walk was silent, as we had nonverbally agreed to not become a demon’s supper once we had entered the confines of the trees. Still, it passed quickly, the whole trip was dedicated to me dry scrubbing the blood off my face as Amity looked on in amusement. I had just finished as we burst through the edge of the forest, emerging into the clearing where the Owl House sat.

I turned to Amity with a grin. “We made it!” I exclaimed, earning a small smile from the wary witch. High above us, a ferocious screech sounded, rapidly drawing nearer. Amity’s eyes widened, and she ducked down, covering her eyes and ears to protect them from Tenebris, who was diving towards us, her yellow eyes locked on Amity. “Mierda!” I yelped, leaning over Amity in an attempt to intercept the hawk before she could hurt her. “Tenebris, don’t!” I yelled.

Only ten feet above us, Tenebris sharply changed course, swooping around us to lose speed before landing heavily on my shoulder, her weight making me stagger. She peeped at me softly, preening her beak through my hair. I chuckled, reaching up and petting her chest lightly. “I missed you too, tu pajaro loco.” Amity slowly straightened beside me, her eyes locked on my now lovey palisman.

I cleared my throat, grabbing Amity’s hand and gently dragging her closer. “Tenebris,” I said softly, “this is Amity. She’s a friend now, okay? Can you be nice to her, please?” Tenebris turned to stare at the witch, hostility still gleaming in her piercing eyes.

Amity tightened her grip on my hand. “I’m sorry,” she told my vengeful bird nervously, “I regret chasing after Luz… and almost killing her. Several times.” She winced, pausing for a moment before forging on. “I was under strict orders, but Luz found another way. Can you forgive me?”

Tenebris’ glare softened, and she peeped at Amity, making the witch smile in relief.

“Thank you,” she said to my crazy, overprotective bird. “I promise I wouldn’t hurt her again.”

Tenebris peeped again, like, “yeah, you _better_ not,” then flew off my shoulder and over the forest, drifting away until she was but a dot in the darkening sky.

Amity looked at me in confusion, making me shrug. “She's probably hungry.” I pulled Amity towards the house, motioning for her to be quiet when I saw the Hooty was asleep. We crept past him, stealthily slipping through the door and closing it gently behind us. “Eda!” I called out, Amity pulling her hand out of mine as I turned to look around, “I’m ho-”

Eda stood only a few feet in front of us, her teeth bared in a snarl and her feathered arms puffed up in anger. “ _You_ ,” she seethed, her narrowed eyes boring into Amity, making her flinch and grab onto my arm again. “You stole my kid,” Eda hissed, stalking forward slowly, “I will kill you for that.” She raised a poofy arm and drew a golden circle, light streaming into it as it filled the air with a low hum.

My heart leapt to my throat, fear sweeping its twisted way through my mind. “Eda, no!!” I yelled desperately, lunging forward to intercept the eerie spell. Eda’s eyes widened out of her glare, and she closed her fist just in time to stop the magic from slamming into my chest. I stumbled, catching myself before I could fall and crashing into Eda, wrapping my arms around her as tears traced the lines of dirt on my face.

“Are you okay?” I asked her wobbly, my voice muffled by her shirt.

The tension drained out of her with a sigh, and to my disbelief she returned my hug, squeezing me briefly before pushing me back so that she could see me. “I’m okay,” she reassured me, a crooked grin on her face, “it takes more than the entire Emperor’s Coven to take me down."

I laughed, wiping away my tears with a trembling hand. Then I remembered the witch behind me and turned, grabbing Amity’s hand and pulling her forward. “Eda,” I began, “this is Amity. She saved my life.” I blinked. “Well, after she tried to kill me, of course.”

Eda scowled, glaring daggers at the shaking witch. “Of course,” she growled.

I rolled my eyes, smacking Eda lightly with my free hand. “Be nice,” I ordered.

Eda just shook her head, gesturing for us to take a seat on the couch. “Explain,” she demanded.

We sat, Eda perching on a chair a few feet in front of us, staring expectantly at Amity. Amity glanced at me, clearly uncertain on what to do. I smiled at her, gesturing for her to talk. And she did. Quickly too, it only took her half an hour to rely the whole event to Eda, who sat silently the whole time, listening carefully.

After Amity finished, it was silent for a minute as Eda thought over what she had heard, eyes unfocused as she mulled over the information. Finally, she smiled and brought her hands together in a loud clap, making Amity flinch.

“Well, Amity!” She said, standing, “I’ve decided that you’re okay. But if any harm befalls Luz with you around, I _will_ destroy your whole bloodline.” She was still smiling, her pleasant expression more appropriate for discussions about the weather than one about mass familicide.

Amity stiffened, then relaxed with a shrug. “That’s fair,” she responded with a weak smile.

Eda nodded approvingly, then grabbed the Sword of Speculo off the wall, handing it to the startle witch. “Here you go,” she said reluctantly, “I hate to have to give this up, but losing my housecleaner would be so much worse. Bye bye now!” Eda left the room, thumping her way up the stairs, presumably to go to bed.

I chuckled, regaining Amity’s attention as she looked at me curiously. “Great job!” I told her, poking her gently in the ribs, “you survived being killed!”

She rolled her eyes at me, giving me an exasperated smile. “Gee, thanks Luz,” she retorted, standing and walking towards the door. “I should get going,” she said, turning back to face me, “my mom’s gonna be wondering where I am.”

I stood with a laugh, maneuvering past the furniture to reach the witch. “Remember,” I told her, waggling a finger in her direction, “your mom’s a bitch.”

Amity smiled. “My mom’s a bitch,” she agreed, drawing a spell circle and levitating the sword behind herself.

“Exactly!” I said, pulling her into a quick hug before drawing back, holding onto her shoulders as I grinned at her. Amity flushed, her ears moving down. Her teal hair shone in the dim light, reminding me as something I had promised her. “Oh!” I exclaimed, dropping my arms and spinning around, “stay there, I’ll be right back!”

I charged up the stairs and into my room, quickly drawing a light glyph to illuminate the dark room. A dark blob on my bed stirred, and King’s head poked up, eyes narrowed sleepily.

“Hi, Luz,” he said, yawning, “you were at the market for a long time.”

I stared at him, trying to determine if he was joking or not. “Yeah…” I dragged out, shaking my head slightly as I moved to my dresser, quickly grabbing the seventh and eighth Azura books before running back downstairs, sliding a bit on the turn into the main room. Amity still stood by the door, her wide eyes startled by my sudden appearance.

“Here!” I exclaimed, rushing over and handing her the books. “The seventh and eighth books. They’re sooo good!”

“Thanks!” Amity responded eagerly, her eyes hungrily scanning the covers. She looked back up at me, smiling softly. “Really, thank you,” she said, her gentle voice a near whisper.

I chuckled. “No problem!” I shot her a pair of finger guns with a wink. “Thank you for not killing me!”

She laughed, shaking her head at me in amusement. “Bye, Luz,” she murmured, reaching out a hand to touch my arm for a moment before turning and walking out the door, quiet as she crept past the faintly snoring door owl.

“Bye,” I whispered, a stupid smile plastered to my face.


	7. Frozen Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally have free time again! This chapter is short (sorry), because technically it's part of the next chapter (which isn't done yet 'cause it's super fucking long). However I feel bad that I haven't posted in a week for the second time in a row, so I cut off this little snippet for you all :)

There are some things in life that are simple, such as riding a bike or acting as live bait for ravenous demons. Such actions are instinctive and don’t require a lot of thinking. Instead, you can just zone out and let your body do its thing whilst praying you won’t die a gruesome, painful death. Sleeping at the Owl House is _not_ one of those things.

It was half past midnight, and I was lying prone on my bed. I stared sleepily up at the dark ceiling, unable to achieve blissful unconsciousness. The reason for this was not King, who was snuggled up against me, nor was it Tenebris, who was perched on the headboard above me, sound asleep and softly snoring. It wasn’t even because of the creatures in the forest, though their occasional cries pierced the night. No, there was something else.

Drifting through the floor from downstairs came an awful, persistent scratching sound. It was as if someone was scraping a fork in circles around the rim of the metal kitchen sink. And I would know, as King had once done exactly that when he was bored. After only five minutes of it, I had been sorely tempted to chop my ears off. Luckily, Eda had intercepted the demon (and forced him to clean Hooty as punishment) before I had to resort to such drastic measures. But this hollow, grating squeal was ten times worse than even that.

After another minute of torture, I couldn’t take it anymore. I slid out of bed, taking care to not disturb the other slumbering occupants. Using the light of the nearly full moon to guide me, I made my way out the door, trudging grumpily down the hall. The noise grew louder as I lumbered down the stairs, and I covered my ears with a scowl, trying to block out the irritating sound. Alas, it did not work. I rounded the corner, bursting into the main room in a fury, ready to destroy whatever was producing that awful, awful ruckus. But when I looked around, my anger faded into confusion, and I slowed to a stop, trying to comprehend the unusual scene in front of me.

The room was an utter mess. Scattered around the large, open space were heaping piles of jars, each an opaque grey wrapped with a white label describing the contents in a nearly illegible scrawl of a handwriting. At the center of the disaster was a massive black cauldron, the indigo liquid within dangerously close to boiling over its edges. A shiny metal pole swirled around the lip of the cauldron, sloshing its contents ever closer to spilling and producing that dreadful howl that had awoken me. And next to the apparatus stood Eda, her brows furrowed in concentration as she read from an old dusty book bound in black leather.

I made my way over to her, picking my way through the labyrinth of jars. “Eda…? What are you _doing_?” I inquired cautiously, blinking sleepily in the bright light.

Her head snapped up in surprise, though she grinned cheerfully when she saw me next to her. “Ah, Luz!” she exclaimed, flipping back a few pages, “Good, you’re up. I’ll need you for this next part.”

“Next part of what?” I asked warily, wincing as the scraping took on an even higher pitch, “and can you _please_ stop that awful sound?!”

“What? Oh, right.” She snapped her fingers without looking up, and the metal stick shifted, the harsh squeal fading as it moved towards the middle of the vat, stirring slow circles in the center.

My shoulders slumped in relief, and I uncovered my ears, letting out a happy sigh as I relaxed into the heavenly silence.

“Anyways,” Eda continued distractedly, her eyes busily scanning the book, “I’m brewing up something. For you.”

“Oh!” I exclaimed, a little disbelievingly. “Really? That’s… uncharacteristically nice of you.” My eyes narrowed, and I side-eyed her suspiciously. “What is it?”

Eda finally looked up at me, a scowl gracing her face as she glowered at me. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she defended primely, “I’m _incredibly_ nice. I protected you from the Emperor’s Coven just two days ago!”

“Alright!” I said with a laugh, raising my hands in surrender. “That was very good of you. Even though I got kidnapped anyways and nearly died like, five times.” I hesitated, my worthless bisexual brain filling with thoughts of my would-be jailor. I shook my head to clear it, beating back the untimely mental interference. “Although,” I dragged out, getting myself back on topic, “I seem to recall you using magic just yesterday to launch me hundreds of feet into the sky.”

Eda sniffed. “That was nice,” she stated indignantly.

My jaw dropped in incredulity. “ _How?!_ ” I sputtered, throwing my arms out and glaring at the indifferent witch, “The forest was _not_ a soft landing, I’m lucky I didn’t get ripped to shreds! Then I got stuck in a tree! And _then_ I almost got eaten by a six-foot demon squirrel! It took me hours to climb down!”

“Nice for _me_ ,” she clarified with a smirk, “It was very amusing to watch.” She shook her head at me in an almost piteous sort of way. “Not everything is about you, human,” she chided haughtily, her face blank but for the laughter still dancing in her eyes.

My eye twitched.

“Besides!” Eda continued, waving a feathered hand in dismissal, “That palisman of yours fought of the squirrel, so I don’t see what your problem is.”

I watched the feathers drift to the floor from Eda’s motion, taking the short time to rein in my frustration. I rubbed my arms, tracing the crisscrossing networks of scratches I had obtained in my fall through the trees. I had stubbornly refused to let Eda heal them, even though the deepest still ached through their scabs. With a long, heavy sigh, I ran my hands through my hair and looked back up. Eda was reading again, apparently content that she had won our dispute. I shrugged, deciding I didn’t care enough to argue about it more.

“So,” I began, moving next to Eda so that I could see the book, “what are you so kindly making for me?”

She flipped back a few pages, landing on a diagram of an elliptical dark purple stone laced with concentric swirls. “This,” Eda said, tapping the picture, “is a petram. It’s a sort of pendant that gives the wearer a specific magical resistance. They’re _highly_ illegal.” She paused, grinning down at me. “Not that I care,” she chuckled, ruffling my already disheveled hair.

“Anyhow,” Eda continued, turning back to her book, “after the whole you getting kidnapped thing, I figured that you need something to protect you. I don’t have enough hands to defend us both in a serious fight like that one.”

“Cool! What does this petram do?” I asked her curiously.

Eda cleared her throat. “It’s sort of a catch-all,” she explained, “it nullifies all spells cast on you with the intent of harm. I could still, say, blast you into the sky, but only as long as I’m not trying to actually hurt you. But if I cast it with the aim to hurt you, nothing would happen.”

“Oh,” I blinked slowly, thinking through the implications, “That sounds useful.” Beside me, Eda nodded in agreement. “Why is it illegal?” I asked her with a frown, “that seems like something that would benefit everyone.”

Eda snorted in derision. “Probably because it would be hard for the Emperor to keep control if he couldn’t kill anyone who defies him.” She paused, then snapped her fingers. “Oh! And because it’s super dangerous to make. There’s about a fifty/fifty chance it’ll fail and blow up the entire Isles.”

I stared warily at the bubbling cauldron. “Well then. That would be unfortunate,” I deadpanned.

“Eh,” she shrugged in disinterest, “if it does, oh well. I’ve had a good run.”

I rolled my eyes at her nonchalant dismissal. “ _I_ care if I blow up,” I told her dryly, “so let’s try to avoid that, yes?”

“Sure thing kiddo!” she crowed, cackling.

“Great,” I murmured with a sigh. “Glad we got that settled. So, what did you need me for?”

I jumped as Eda slammed her book closed. “Grab that spoon there,” she ordered, gesturing to the metal stick in the cauldron, “and start stirring.”

I did as she said, slowly mixing the sloshing concoction. Despite it being boiling, intense cold radiated off the liquid, numbing my hands and racking me with shivers. My own body temperature dropped rapidly, and I began to long for my warm bed. “Wh-why is it s-so cold?” I huffed through chattering teeth, pushing to keep my freezing arms in motion.

“Sorry kid,” Eda apologized, standing in front of the cauldron, “this will only take a couple minutes. Do _not_ stop stirring, or we’ll all get blown to bits.”

I groaned, hunching my shoulders in an attempt to preserve some warmth. My eyes stung from the frigid fumes. Eda took in an audibly deep breath, then raised her arms, feathers poofing as she gathered herself. She drew one huge spell circle, the thick, golden lines crackling like lightning. More golden light streamed out of the confines of the circle, waving softly as the current slowly floated towards the cauldron, the dark liquid rising to meet it as I stirred.

My jaw dropped. I forgot my freezing body for a moment as I watched Eda pour out her magic into the spell. Her head was lowered, though I could see that her eyes were squeezed shut, and her teeth bared at the effort of sustaining such a costly circle. The plumage on her arms grew thicker, new feathers sprouting as it marched up her neck.

I gasped as the temperature plummeted sharply, snapping my attention back to stirring as I desperately forced my weakening arms through the repetitive motions. My teeth were on the verge of rattling out of my skull as they chattered, my uneven breaths coming out in a fog of white vapor. It felt like my blood was turning to ice, and I was half convinced that my leaden limbs would collapse under the weight of it. The ice was traveling to my lungs, where it seared my every breath. Nevertheless, I kept stirring, feeling as if the rhythmic movements were my only tie to life. If I stopped, I might just cease to exist.

Unsurprisingly, Eda lied. Through my dimming vision I could just see the clock on the wall cheerfully ticking away the seconds. I observed blurrily as one minute passed, then five, and then ten. I could no longer feel my arms, and watched in detached fascination as they continued to move in circles, feeling as if they belonged to someone else. Surely those could not be _my_ fingertips stained with blue. I was fairly certain that my own skin was brown, not this pale, frightening hue. _Someone should warn them_ , I noted dimly to myself, the thoughts trickling their way through the sludge in my mind, _that color doesn’t look very healthy_.

I set my unfocused gaze back up to the wall, searching for the clock. The room was blurring together now, and all I could see were fuzzy blobs of distorted colors. The clock had disappeared. I frowned, wondering hazily where it had gone. There was a guttural growl next to me, and I turned my head towards it, grinning stupidly at the floaty sensation the movement caused.

There was a grey mass beside me, faint light trickling from the sputtering circle before it. As I watched, the circle snapped, and the form staggered to the side at its absence. Then another circle appeared, much smaller and steadier than before. A deep hum joined the ringing in my ears, clashing horribly in pitch. I winced, turning back to the cauldron in hopes that it would stop. It didn’t, of course.

Now I was looking back into the vat. Past the stranger’s arms, which had stopped stirring and were now traced with blue, the liquid seethed angrily. It contracted in on itself, the hum growing to a scream as it was compacted down, growing smaller and smaller by the second. I stood there frozen (quite literally), swaying and I stared in muddled wonderment.

Then my eyes rolled back into my head, and I collapsed in a heap.


	8. Too Cool to Die

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun Facts!  
> A) Luz being cold is based of that fact that it’s 70 degrees in my house and I’m fucking freezing.  
> 2) Luz’s dream is loosely based off a dream I once had that emotionally crippled me. Yay!

I woke slowly, my cold body stinging with pain. I groaned, folding in on myself in a futile attempt to relieve it.

A dull voice came from my right. “Sorry kid,” it said, the words garbled as if the speaker had something in their mouth, “that’s all I can do for you right now. I’m all out of magic, I’m afraid.”

I pried open my frozen eyelids, stifling a pained cry as the sensitive skin tore open. Blood dripped into my eyes, obscuring my vision. Not that there was much to see, as the room was a murky grey, the light of the moon streaming through the windows and casting the once familiar layout into shadows.

I reached up a hand to wipe my eyes, wincing as I gingerly touched the narrow gashes. I drew back, cold blood trickling down my face. “Eda…?” I murmured wobbly, “What’s going on? Are we dead?”

It was silent for a moment, then she spoke up again. “No, Luz. I stabilized it before it could blow up.” There was a pause. “You did good, kid. We did it. It’s done.”

I sat up, twitching my head to shake the blood from my eyes as I tried to look around. “Oh, thank fuck,” I sighed in relief, “let’s never do that ever again.”

There was a sound of confirmation from Eda, but nothing else.

I dug through the pockets of my sweatpants, searching hopefully for some paper. There was nothing. Grumbling, I got to my feet to search blindly the end table, where I vaguely remembered leaving writing supplies. Walking was torturous. Every step caused frigid needles to shoot up my legs, racking me with shivers once again. The wounds on my eyes were excruciatingly annoying; blood trickled down in a steady stream, forcing me to stop every step to wipe my eyes clear. It was so fucking unfair how much blinking hurt.

Finally, I made it, running directly into the table and nearly tumbling over it. I caught myself on the flat surface, the jolt jarring my stiff arms. I gasped as a wave of intense pain traveled up from my fingertips, a deep, aching throb springing up wherever it went.

I ordered my body to stand upright, holding back a whimper as my spine crackled at the simple movement. Picking up a pencil with an unsteady hand, I drew a shaky light glyph, feeling my way through the shape with my other hand.

Sharp relief coursed through me as the paper crumbled into a sphere of light, plunging the dark room into sudden light. I cupped it in my hands, dimly noting the trembling sheen of red and blue coating my icy skin.

I turned back towards Eda, focusing on my socked feet as I staggered my way back towards her. Drawing near, I looked up at her. “Eda, I- Mierda!” I stumbled back in surprise, falling flat on my ass. Adrenaline seared through me, and I scooted backwards, shaking away the blood in my eyes as I struggled to keep sight of the thing in front of me.

It wasn’t particularly tall; maybe just a few inches taller than me. But covering it was a large, thick coat of grey feathers, the ones tracing its spine darker than those on its front. Long, pale ears stuck out of the feathery mane, twitching back and forth to catch the soft nighttime sounds. Jagged fangs poked out of the sides of its mouth, and familiar golden eyes stared into mine, spots of black slowly swelling across the irises.

“Eda…” I breathed out. My leaden heart dropped through my chest as I took in her new appearance. “Is-” I swallowed back a whimper rising in my throat. “Is that you?”

It nodded slightly, reaching out a clawed hand towards me. “Luz,” Eda’s voice came from it, distorted by the long teeth, “I-” Her voice broke as I flinched away from her, and she drew back her proffered hand to cradle it against her chest. She looked away with a low growl. “I’m sorry,” Eda whispered regretfully, “I was planning on telling you before this happened.”

I didn’t know what to say. My mouth gaped open like a fish’s, and my mind felt as frozen as the rest of me.

Eda closed her eyes and took a deep, shuttering breath. Then she opened them again, her blackening eyes boring into mine. “Luz, I don’t have much time,” she told me sternly, “Run. Go get King, he knows what to do.”

I couldn’t move. All I wanted was to curl up in a ball and cry. There was no part of me that wanted to deal with Eda’s vague warnings.

Eda’s claws flexed, and she took a shambling step towards me, her body shuttering as she visibly fought with herself. Her plumage bristled, and her lips curled back, exposing a row of lengthening incisors. Black gunk oozed past her teeth as they grew. “ _Go!_ ” Eda snarled viciously, shrinking in on herself as she covered her face with her hands.

The snarl snapped me out of my trance, and I stumbled to my feet, taking off in a stilted, painful run towards the stairs. Behind me, a shrill wail pierced the air, warbling into an agonized shriek.

I took the stairs three at a time, struggling to keep my balanced as blood continued to pool in my eyes, eclipsing my already hindered vision. I skidded at the turn, then burst into my room, spinning to slam the door firmly shut behind me. I leaned heavily against the door as I tried to control my racing heart. As my terror subsided, misery swarmed to take its place, and I slid down to sit huddled on the floor. A sob built in my throat, and I put my head in my hands, shaking with nerves and cold.

King’s voice floated towards me from the bed. “Was that Eda?” he asked worriedly, his drowsy squeak filled with dread.

Sniffling, I nodded. I rubbed my eyes, grimacing as the tender wounds protested and flicking globs of blood away. There was a rush of wings, then Tenebris landed on my knee, peeping in concern as she shoved her face into mine. I blinked blurrily as I tried to focus on her, reaching up a pale, shaking blue hand to pet her soft chest.

“Hey, carino,” I murmured quietly to her, smiling unsteadily as she butted her head into my hand. She climbed onto my arm, scaling it like a ladder until she was perched on my shoulder, where she began to gently preen her beak through my hair. My scalp was so cold I could barely feel it. Using the floor to brace myself, I got to my feet and stumbled through the dark to my bed, collapsing against the headboard so that I was sitting upright. King promptly clambered onto my lap, staring up at me anxiously.

“Are you okay?” He asked, grabbing one of my hands and examining it carefully. “Do you humans often turn blue?”

I gently pulled my hand away from him, wrapping my arms around my midsection as I shivered. Whatever Eda had done to warm me up was fading rapidly, and I could feel the bitter chill returning to my bones. At least the wounds on my eyelids were freezing closed, I could finally see again as the trickle of blood slowed to a stop. “N-no,” I chattered, “it’s fr-frostbite. It happens when our bodies get too c-cold. Very d-dangerous.” This should have worried me, but I didn’t feel very concerned. Dimly, I wondered if that was a bad thing. After the night I’ve had, I couldn’t tell anymore.

King, however, looked like he was about to go into a full-scale panic. “Oh geez,” he squeaked, eyes wide as he wrung his paws together fretfully, “this is not good.” He squirmed his way under my arms, hugging me in a desperate attempt to help thaw me. “You’re so cold…” he said faintly, tilting up his hand to gaze up at me. His fangs poked into my chest, reminding me uncomfortably of the ones Eda had grown.

“Wh-what’s happening to Eda?” I mumbled lowly, shrinking as I huddled myself around King’s warmth.

“She’s-” King hesitated, fear swarming into his worried eyes. “She’s cursed,” he finished quickly, “she doesn’t know why or how it happened, but every so often she changes into this: the Owlbeast. In this form she’s basically an ultra-aggressive predator who’d kill us without remorse.”

Yikes. “She just transforms, like, randomly?” I asked, wincing as my chapped lips split open. The taste of iron filled my mouth.

He shook his head, fangs digging a trench in my skin. “Whenever Eda uses more magic than what she has energy for,” he elaborated, “She has an elixir that’s supposed to prevent it, but it hasn’t seemed to work for years now. Eda’s been holding herself together with binding spells, but every so often…” King shrugged helplessly.

There was a scraping sound outside my door, as if something huge was dragging itself past. All three of us watched the door in wary silence until the sound faded as the Owlbeast continued down the hallway.

I sat there quietly, still except for the tremors racking my body as I thought through what the demon had told me. I was so tired. It would be easy to just let myself drift off into nothingness… to lose all my hurts and fears.

“Luz?” King prompted quietly, “Are you okay?”

I shook my head lightly, dismissing the alluring notion of sleep. Eda needed me; I couldn’t give up now. “How do we get her back?”

King was watching me worriedly, but responded to my question nonetheless. “I don’t know,” he admitted reluctantly, “I always hide and wait for her to change back on her own. It used to only take a few hours, but now it takes days or weeks.” He looked me up and down. “Eda made me a little cabinet to wait it out in, but I don’t think you would fit. It’s pretty small.”

Now I was feeling nervous. I’m just contrary like that; frostbite doesn’t faze me, but Eda turning in to a bloodthirsty monster? No thanks. I tried to come up with some creative solution that would solve everything, but nothing came to mind. “Can we leave?” I inquired desperately, “Just hightail it outta here and come back once she’s better?”

King shook his head sadly. “Eda told me to never leave the house when she’s in the Owlbeast form. This is its nest, and it hates trespassers. If we leave, it will hunt us down and vivisect us as soon as it’s dark enough for it to follow.”

I straightened, latching onto the last couple words. “‘As soon as it’s dark enough?’” I repeated hopefully. “What does that mean?”

“The Owlbeast is nocturnal,” King told me, “it can stay awake during the day, but its eyes are so light-sensitive that it can’t go outside.”

I blinked slowly, the gears in my brain whirling as I tried to think of something. An idea finally occurred to me, and I tried my head to look at Tenebris, who was huddled comfortingly against my neck like a little, feathery heater. “Tenebris, can you go get help?” I pleaded, “You’re small enough to escape without Eda noticing.”

She stared at me, her yellow eyes wide with concern. She peeped once, somehow managing to convey all her doubts and reserves in that one sound.

I smiled shakily at her. “Don’t worry,” I said, trying to soothe the worried hawk, “I’ll be fine. King and I will hide right here until you get back.” _I hope_ , I added internally.

She shifted from foot to foot uncertainly, then bobbed her head slowly in a nod.

“Thank you,” I breathed in relief. “Be careful.”

She wiped her beak on my face lovingly, then took off out the window on silent wings. After a few moments, she was gone.

I turned back to King with a sigh. The air wafting in through the open window was hot as it hit my skin, a fact that was mildly concerning since it was almost winter. I had never been this cold in my entire eighteen years of life. My eyes were drifting closed. “I’m so tired,” I mumbled weakly to King, “So cold…”

“Hey, none of that!” King protested, slapping me to wake me up. “C’mon Luz!” he cried, anxiety seeping into his squeaky voice, “It’s not safe to stay here. And if you die on me… I swear to titan I will _never_ forgive you!”

I smiled softly, cracking open my aching eyes to stare fondly at the little demon. “I’ll be okay, King,” I soothed, “I just need to sleep for a bit.”

He didn’t look convinced. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” he whined, “you might not wake up again.”

I shrugged. With how frigid my stinging body was, I didn’t really care about little details such as my probable demise. “Just five minutes,” I slurred feebly, my eyes closing again. King’s panicked voice echoed through my head as I drifted off to sleep.

I have to say, sleeping while on the brink of death does _not_ produce pleasant dreams. I was standing in the middle of a frozen tundra, the deep snow stretching infinitely in every direction. It was midday, but even though the sun was directly overhead, it offered me no warmth. I turned in circles, shivering as I searched desperately the distant horizon for something- _anything_ that could help me.

A flicker of light appeared in the corner of my eye, and I spun around to see an orange glow in the distance, maybe a couple miles away. _Maybe it’s a fire_ , I thought to myself hopefully, _or a minifridge filled with hot chocolate_. That decided it. I set off towards the faint light, trudging through the knee-deep snow. It was slow, tedious work, although I didn’t seem to be tiring.

Time passed me by, I had no clue how long I’d been walking for. It could have been minutes, hours, or even days. Yet the sun stayed fixed above my head, seemingly following me across the tundra. I swung my arms wide in boredom, noting curiously that the blue creeping up my arms was darkening now. That probably wasn’t good.

Walking must have generated some body heat, because I felt as if I was thawing again. Smarting barbs traveled up my body with every little movement, radiating from my hands and feet and weaving up my spine as they traveled to my head.

Cold tears trailed down my cheeks, splattering onto the snow as I walked and staining the pristine white a dark red. _Red?_ I frowned. I wiped the tears away, drawing back my hands to find them dripping with blood. Dream-me decided that that wasn’t a cause for concern and lumbered on. In the back of my mind, I began to dimly wonder if I was dead. More blood began to ooze from my cracked lips, joining the steady trickle of blood from my eyes in its journey to the ground.

I glanced up from my snow ladened feet, scanning for the glow for the hundredth time. I come to a halt, gawking in my surprise. A campfire crackled merrily just in front of me, the snow around it untarnished by its warmth.

I hurriedly threw myself towards it, collapsing on top of it in my overwhelming desire for warmth. Somehow, it did not burn me nor light me into a screaming ball of fire. Instead, it sent heat rocketing through my frozen body, thawing me rapidly without any throbbing pain.

It was wonderful. I sighed in bliss, closing my eyes and relaxing into the cozy flames. My body sank into it as the snow surrounding me began to melt away, simply disappearing as if it had never even existed to begin with. The wind picked up, tousling my hair and whispering indistinctly.

The whispers slowly began to take form, shifting from the sighing of the wind to a voice of a familiar cadence. My sluggish mind couldn’t identify who it belonged to, but as it grew louder and louder in my ears, I had a hazy feeling that it was calling my name. Quite insistently too. The voice began to lift me of the ground, pulling me in a whirl of wind up into the sky. I clung tightly to the flames, afraid of letting go and becoming cold again. The wind howled, yanking me sharply upwards as it tried to dislodge me.

Beneath me, the fire shuddered and growled, another voice speaking up from it. “Leave her alone!” it snapped, sounding quite angry. The wind faded, and the fire spoke again. This time, its voice was much kinder. “Luz, wake the fuck up,” it told me firmly.

“Fire?” I mumbled, my fuzzy brain struggling to make sense of what was happening. “Nice fire…” I said softly, voice muffled by the flames as I snuggled deeper into them. The fire flinched. This struck me as odd. _Wait,_ I asked myself perplexedly, _does fire talk?_ I was pretty sure it didn’t.

I frowned. No, I distinctly remembered that fire _definitely_ could not speak. I cracked open my eyes, blinking in confusion as I realized I wasn’t lying on a campfire. Instead, my face was pressed into soft fabric that rose and fell as it breathed, a heartbeat hammering through to reach my ears.

I scrunched up my nose. “Wha-?” I creaked out in a voice as rough as sandpaper. I cleared my throat and tried again. This time, it was audible. “What’s going on?”

A shrill squeal sounded right beside my ear, making me wince and recoil away from it. “Luz!” I now recognized the voice as King’s. “You’re finally awake! I thought you were dead, asshole!” Something punched my side, and I groaned in pain as the impact traveled up my tender nerves, closing my eyes tightly against the wave of pain.

My pillow shifted. “Knock it off, Pipsqueak,” it hissed, presumably at King. Warmth seared through me again, and the ache faded into a memory. I was lifted up and down as my pillow sighed heavily. “How are you feeling?” It asked me gently, the words vibrating through my body.

“Stiff,” I ground out slowly, my voice still husky, “Dead.”

There was a low chuckle. “You’re not dead,” it told me with amusement. Its feminine voice was very familiar, but I couldn’t quite pinpoint where I’d heard it before. I furrowed my brow in concentration, but I just could not think of who it belonged to. Giving up, I opened my eyes blearily, tipping up my chin to gaze up at the face of the person I was laying on. Golden eyes met mine, and Amity smiled softly down at me. Upon her head, Tenebris was perched, staring down at me in concern.

“Amity…? What are you doing here? Tenebris is on your head?” I realized I was laying halfway up her torso, my arms wrapped tightly around her and our legs tangled together. “We’re cuddling,” I stated dumbly, “Why are we cuddling?”

She rolled her eyes at me. “Your bird brought me here,” she grumbled exasperatedly, glaring up at Tenebris, “She wouldn’t leave me alone until I followed her. As for the other thing…” Amity’s ears went down, and she looked away as her face flushed. “I sat down next to you to heal you, ‘cause it works better with physical contact,” she explained awkwardly, “And you just… clambered on top of me and latched on.”

 _Oh_ , I thought. Heat rose to my cheeks, a welcome change from the cold. _That’s embarrassing_. I pulled my arms out from under her, making Amity squirm uncomfortably. “Sorry about that,” I huffed, rolling off of her to lean on the headboard next to her.

Amity shook her head. “It’s fine,” she told me, though I saw her sag in relief. She looked down at me worriedly. “You were almost dead, Luz,” she said gently, “I practically had to restart your heart, and you were literally frozen… What did you do to get yourself in that state?”

King climbed over Amity and onto my chest, making her scowl in irritation. “I haven’t told her anything,” King informed me, returning the witch’s glare. “I wanted to make sure she didn’t kill you first. And I still don’t trust you!” He added wrathfully, pointing an accusing claw at Amity.

I patted his head softly to calm him down, waiting until he curled up before turning back to Amity. “Sorry,” I muttered, gesturing to King, “he’s… rambunctious.”

She cracked a small smile, though she still looked aggravated. Then her expression turned serious again. “The one thing he did say was that I had to be quiet, or else we’d all die an ‘excruciatingly gruesome death that would kill us real dead,’” she quoted, looking only mildly perturbed at the thought.

I winced, remembering that I too had to be quiet, or else Eda would slaughter us. “Right,” I sighed, “We have some problems right now.”

Amity sighed heavily, her eyes going sharp with frustration. “Please just tell me,” she growled, “After getting harassed by Tenebris and bringing you back to life, I deserve some answers.”

I sucked in a slow breath through clenched teeth, unsure if I should tell her about Eda and I’s less-than-legal activity. “Weeeell,” I dragged out guiltily.

Luckily, Amity seemed to get it. “I think we’ve already established that I’m not going to arrest you,” she said drily, rolling her eyes at my avoidance, “Just say it.”

I shrugged. “Okay, but I’m gonna hold you to that,” I informed her, causing the witch to scoff delicately in response. “Eda and I were brewing up an, um,” I cleared my throat awkwardly. “A petram,” I finished in a small voice.

Amity’s eyes widened. “Are you _insane_?!” she hissed loudly, glowering at me as she hit my shoulder. “Do you know how dangerous that is! You could have killed everyone!”

I flinched, rubbing my shoulder with a pout. “Ow?!” I protested, narrowing my eyes at her judgmentally.

She glared at me in return, her ears fully pinned down in anger. “Well you deserve it,” she scolded, scowling irately, “Of all the _stupid_ things you could have done… no wonder you were almost dead! That kind of magic is banned for a reason, Luz!!”

Now it was my turn to look away, guilt bubbling up in me as I folded my arms protectively across my chest. “I didn’t know,” I said softly, the concept of my own mortality finally sinking in. “Eda told me it was dangerous, but I didn’t know-” my voice broke with a sob, and I closed my eyes tightly as I fought to keep from crying.

“Luz…” Amity’s voice was much more gentle now, and she placed a hand on my shoulder, turning me towards herself.

I reluctantly opened my eyes, tears spilling out as I did. I quickly wiped them away, half worried I’d find my hand covered in blood again. Well, fresh blood, anyways. To my relief, only dried blood stained my skin, though the sheer quantity of it startled me. I sniffled, staring down in horror at my red, trembling hands. “Oh,” I sighed, my breathing growing rapidly as panic festered in me. Pale hands grabbed onto my red ones, obscuring them from my sight.

“Luz,” Amity said again, this time sounding worried. “It’s okay,” she reassured me, “We’ll get you cleaned off.”

I sniffled. “It’s not that,” I told her brokenly, “It’s Eda. She’s…”

A snarl outside my door cut me off, and I flinched in fear. Amity whirled around to stare at the door, dislodging Tenebris from her head with a squawk. The hawk hopped down to land on my shoulder, glaring at the door as she fluffed up protectively over me. On my lap, King stirred, snapping to attention and diving to hide behind Amity. Snuffling continued behind the door, the wood creaking as something pushed down on it.

“That’s Eda,” I finished in a small voice. “She’s currently trying to kill us.”

Amity’s eyes widened in realization, and she whipped her head around to glare down at King. “You could have just _said_ Eda was in her Owlbeast form!” she snapped.

King didn’t reply, instead shrinking further behind the witch for safety.

My jaw dropped. “You _knew_ about this?” I asked her in disbelief.

Amity rolled her eyes. “Of course,” she told me, “Everyone does. Eda had a rather… public transformation a few years back.” She hesitated, then patted my leg softly. “Stay here,” she ordered kindly, “I’ll take care of it.”

My eyes widened, and I grabbed onto Amity’s arm to stop her. “You’re gonna _kill_ her?!” I squeaked, my voice an octave higher than usual.

“You really think I would- No!” Amity objected indignantly, yanking her arm away from me, “Of course not! I’m just gonna tie her up so that we don’t die.” Amity shook her head at me and climbed off the bed, walking slowly towards the door.

“Oh,” I relaxed, then sprang up to follow her, Tenebris digging her claws into me to keep her balance.

Amity’s ears twitched as the mattress groaned, and she turned back to narrow her eyes suspiciously at me. “Just what do you think you’re doing?” She asked, her voice deceptively pleasant.

I paused, standing awkwardly with my hands folded innocently behind my back. “Following you!” I told her with a shaky grin.

Amity huffed irritably, then marched back to me, coming to a halt a foot in front of me and placing her hands on my shoulders. “Luz, no.” She said firmly, her eyes boring into mine. “You’ve already nearly died once tonight. Also, I’m not that great of a healer, so you need to sit down and rest.” She shoved me gently backwards, and I landed heavily on the edge of the bed, bouncing slightly as I pouted up at her.

Unfortunately, my sorrow did nothing to sway Amity, and she spun back around and walked quietly to the door, where the grating sound of talons carving through wood could be heard. Readying a spell circle in her right hand, Amity yanked opened the door with her left, admitting the Owlbeast, who promptly barreled towards me with a ghastly shriek.

I stood frozen in terror, my mouth gaped open and my eyes wide as I stared blankly at the eight-foot bloodthirsty bundle of feathers that was charging to eat me. Her mouth was open in preparation, grey tongue lolling out and the sharp rows of teeth already smeared with blood. I wondered faintly what she had eaten. On my shoulder, Tenebris flared her wings threateningly and loosed a piercing battle cry, launching herself towards the Owlbeast’s face to attack.

Owl-Eda was only five feet away when her limbs suddenly snapped together, bound tightly by the pink lines of Amity’s magic. The abrupt appearance of the restraints caused the Owlbeast to trip, her momentum sending her flying on top me. I grunted in pain as I was knocked flat by the thousand-pound feathery mass that was Eda. She shrieked in rage and writhed on top of me, alternating between trying to shred me with her talons to trying to shred me with her teeth.

In a miraculous stroke of luck, neither could reach me with how she was tied. Though I did get drooled on quite a bit, the fat drops of bloody saliva dripping down my face. “Ooo groos!” I groaned in disgust, my complaints muffled by the feathers in my mouth.

Then the deadweight was lifted off of me, and I rolled on my side to hack up feathers and owl-spit. Shudders rolled up and down my body as I tried to expel the awful taste from my mouth. It didn’t work, sadly. I was pretty sure I had swallowed some on accident too. King crawled over to pat my back sympathetically, and Amity appeared by my side. I glared at her accusingly. “See? I would have been safer next to you after all!” I told her grouchily, “Instead, I’m now covered in fucking _drool_.”

“Sorry, Luz,” she apologized, not looking very sorry at all as she used my arm to pull me upright. “I thought she’d go for me, not you.”

I squinted up at her suspiciously. Her eyes were amused, and she was fighting back a small smile. “Sorry my ass! You totally knew!” I concluded dramatically, my mouth dropping open at the betrayal. “You used me as _bait!_ Why does _everyone_ use me as bait?!”

Amity gave up on her attempt to keep a straight face, laughing softly as she shook her head at me. “What can I say, you’re just a natural target,” she told me, her eyes crinkling with mirth.

I huffed, rolling my eyes. Then I got an idea, and I grinned devilishly at the smug witch, stalking toward until we were face to face. Relatively, anyways. The fact that I was a couple inches shorter than her probably reduced the effectiveness of my menacing posturing, but nevertheless Amity still took a small step back, her ears twitching down as uncertainty flashed across her face.

I grabbed hold of her elbows, yanking her towards me and holding her there as I shook my head vigorously, splattering bloody spittle everywhere- and most importantly, all over Amity. She let out a petulant cry of disgust, placing her hands on my chest as she tried to shove me away. I cackled with glee as I held tight, making sure to douse the witch with as much of the sticky, smelly substance as I could. After another moment of torture, Amity broke my hold and stumbled backwards, using one hand to wipe her glistening, wrathful face while the one stayed stretched out to keep me away from her.

I howled in laughter at her disgusted expression, clenching my sides as they protested. “You should have seen your face!” I cackled, gasping for breath as my laughter subsided.

Amity glared daggers at me, still swiping globs of spit off herself. “I’m gonna fucking kill you for that,” she snarled lowly, prowling forward as she drew a spell circle by her side.

My eyes widened, and I took that as my cue to run. I darted past her, Tenebris helpfully swooping in Amity’s face to distract her as I made my escape. I passed the gift-wrapped Owlbeast, who growled lowly at me, and shot out the door, turning sharply down the hall and into the bathroom, where I closed and locked the door firmly behind me. I stood still for a few moments, listening intently for any sign of my pursuer. There was nothing. I grinned, figuring Tenebris had managed to pacify the vengeful witch.

I turned to mirror and had to stifle a scream. I looked absolutely horrifying. There were lines of dried blood trailing down my face from my eyes and mouth, extending past my neck and pooling at the collar of my shirt. My hair was gelled up into crazed spikes from the slobber, and my eyes had the wild look of someone who technically should be dead. I grimaced, which made my reflection look even more ghastly. I shuddered and turned my back to the mirror, quickly stripping out of my bloodied and spit-soaked clothes before hopping in the shower. I cranked the water as hot as it would go, relaxing with a content sigh as it pounded onto my face.

I worked quickly, hyperaware that the first person I had crushed on in four years was probably waiting for me. Well, that or she had already unbound Eda and left me to be brutally disemboweled. Given what I had done to her, either was a possibility.

It took a _lot_ of scrubbing to get all the encrusted blood off, but eventually I succeeded, reluctantly stepping out of the shower squeaky-clean. “Oh _mierda_ ,” I cursed in realization, “I didn’t bring any clothes.”

With a groan of self-hatred, I wrapped the towel firmly around myself and trudged back to my room for more embarrassment. Because apparently, I haven’t had enough already tonight.

I walked through the door, keeping my eyes focused on the floor to avoid seeing Amity’s horrified expression. “I’m sorry,” I sighed out, “I forgot clothes.” When I made it all the way to my dresser without comment, I figured it was safe and looked up. In the second-most miraculous event of the night, my room was completely empty, excluding me. “Oh, thank fuck!” I said gratefully, sagging in relief, “that’s a mercy I wasn’t expecting.” I selected clothes at random, desperate to get dressed before my luck finally ran short.

I hummed softly to myself, pulling on a bra and underwear before lifting up the pants I have grabbed. They were the gray jeans I’d been wearing when I first stumbled into the Isles, the rip at the knee still lined with a faint red stain, commemorating the joyful time I had fallen and bashed my knee against a sharp rock. I made a face, wondering if wearing the Pants of Pain would cause me to get hurt again.

After a moment of indecisiveness, I shrugged and put them on anyways. I’d already nearly died twice in the last twelve hours, what’s a couple more times?

“I really should burn these after tonight,” I grumbled to myself as I reached for a shirt.

A voice piped up from the door. “Who are you talking to?” It asked curiously.

I flinched in surprise, spinning around to see Amity standing at the door, looking equally shocked. Her hand gripped the door frame as her reddening ears pinned down. Her wide eyes looked me up and down for one nerve-wracking moment before she tore them away, promptly turning back around and walking swiftly down the hall.

“Fuck,” I muttered. I _knew_ something like that was bound to happen. My luck never lasts for very long. I groaned, hitting my head against the wall in misery. “Fuck,” I repeated. This always happened to me; I’d start a prospective friendship and everything would go well for a week or two, then I’d do something weird or stupid and drive them running away screaming. Like forgetting to close the door when I’m getting dressed. _Maldito idiota,_ I chided myself, blinking back a sudden wave of tears. Why couldn’t I just be normal? Maybe then I wouldn’t be such a fucking screwup.

The familiar weight of depression crept through me, whispering hatefully about everything I’ve ever regretted. _You think she would ever like_ you _?_ It sneered cruelly. _Nobody likes you._

“Shut _up_ ,” I growled lowly, shoving back the onslaught. I took in a deep, shuddering breath, then pushed myself off the wall. I looked down at the shirt I held. As if to complete my mortification, it was a homemade Azura shirt I’d drawn five or six years ago. I sighed, at this point seriously considering just sticking my head in Eda’s maw and letting her chomp it right off. I’d have no more problems.

Unfortunately for me, some buried part of myself shot down that idea. I threw the shirt back into the drawer, letting out all my frustration into that arcing motion. I pulled on a plain black sweater instead, letting the angsty outfit reflect my darkened mood.

There was a peep at the door, and I turned just in time for Tenebris to land on my shoulder, looking up at me worriedly, as if she could sense my mood. Which she probably could, as that seems like a fairly reasonable thing for a magic bird to be able to do.

I smiled at her reassuringly, wiping the misery from my face in an attempt to pacify her. She merely narrowed her eyes at me, letting me know it didn’t work, and telling me off for even trying.

I huffed. “Sorry, Tenebris,” I told her, stroking her chest fondly, “just problems with my stupid, teenage heart.”

She nuzzled against me, trying to comfort me in her own special way. Surprisingly, it actually worked.

“Where are the others?” I asked her, walking out the door and looking back and forth down the hall. She twisted her head to the left, and off we went, Tenebris guiding me to the threshold Eda’s room.

I stopped there, sucking in a breath and I prepared myself. “I can do this,” I muttered lowly, “Just get it over with, Noceda.” My hawk peeped as if repeating the sentiment, then through the door we went.

The scene on the other side was… unusual. Owlbeast-Eda paced in circles around her nest, tinted pink by the magic barrier enclosing the nest on all sides and stretching up to the high ceiling. Amity was crouched on the floor nearby, talking animatedly with King, who was holding a spherical orange vial in his paws. Honestly, the fact that they were getting along was the most astonishing thing.

Tenebris announced our presence with a raucous caw, her narrowed yellow eyes fixed on Amity warningly. Not gonna lie, I was touched by her protectiveness.

Amity straightened to face me, her face completely neutral. She had apparently recovered just fine from our unexpected encounter. “We have a plan,” she told me seriously, gesturing back towards King. “That elixir Eda drinks to control her curse is useless. It’s so watered down that it would only help cure the simplest of curses, and Eda’s is anything but that.” She scowled dangerously. “Technically they’re not even allowed to sell that low of a concentrate, I’ll have a word with the shopkeeper on my next market shift.”

“Oh,” I said eloquently, “Well, that would explain it then.” I frowned in thought. “Can we get a stronger potion for Eda?”

Amity nodded. “That’s the plan,” she told me.

I rolled my eyes at her lack of elaboration. “How, exactly?” I prompted the tight-lipped witch.

She grimaced. “I’ll call in a favor with an acquaintance of mine,” she said grumpily. “But first, I need a shower,” she said, glaring at me, “Since someone drenched me in drool.”

I smiled at her sheepishly. _Oh dear._


	9. Night of Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I’ve written 4000 words and I’m still on the first sub-point of my chapter outline. :/

I’m no stranger to embarrassing situations. When I was sixteen, I unintentionally shattered the live lobster tank at a grocery store, freeing hundreds of angry crustaceans. It probably wouldn’t have been a big deal if they had just flailed helplessly on the floor, but instead they organized into a coup and attacked every human in sight, myself included. You would think the lobsters would have spared me since I freed them, but alas, they did not. Even living in the Boiling Isles, being covered head-to-toe in writhing, pinching seafood is the strangest and most painful thing I’ve ever been through. Which is _definitely_ saying something, given the past two weeks. I still have scars from that day, and Mami and I are forever banned from that store. Super embarrassing.

Or there was that one time the cheerleaders stole my clothes after PE, forcing me to chase them across the busy campus in only a towel to get them back. And then _I_ got suspended for it, which was completely unfair. Although, I did deck the head cheerleader in the face once I finally caught up to them. That was the first time I actually stood up for myself. It had been extremely satisfying, even if her boyfriend did beat me black and blue a week later. Worth it! Nevertheless, it was a _very_ degrading experience. But evidently I hadn’t been through enough yet, and I found that laying in my bed as Amity humorously judged my clothing was an entirely new kind of humiliation.

I had my hands tucked behind my head as I anxiously watched her go through the drawers, looking for clothes that would fit her. It honestly shouldn’t have taken this long, as Amity and I are fairly similar in size, though she is taller and has broader shoulders and hips than I do.

Amity chuckled, pulling out the light blue Azura shirt I had been holding earlier. “This is cute,” she told me amusedly, eyes crinkling in laughter, “Did you make this?”

“Yep,” I said, smiling self-consciously at her, “A long time ago. It’s a miracle it still fits me.”

She raised an eyebrow delicately as she looked me up and down, her eyes quickly returning to my face. “I don’t know,” she told me doubtfully, “It doesn’t look like you’ve grown in a long time. You’re pretty short.”

“ _Hey!_ ” I protested indignantly as I bolted upright, glaring up at the smug witch. “Five-ten is _not_ short. I’m actually quite tall for a human, I’ll have you know.” I snatched the shirt away from her and threw it back into the drawer as Amity outright laughed me. I turned to back to her with a scowl, poking her side with a finger and making her flinch away from me, still giggling. “ _Tu bonita pinche pendejo_. It’s not my fault you witches are skyscrapers!” I grumbled with a scowl.

Amity’s merriment subsided, and she tilted her head curiously. “Was that a human language?” She asked.

I froze. “Yes?” I squeaked, praying she didn’t ask me to translate what I had said. “Though technically English is a ‘human language’ too,” I added as an afterthought.

“Oh please,” Amity rebuffed with a scoff, “We introduced English to your people thousands of years ago. There was a plague, and many thousands of witches migrated to your realm to escape it.”

I grimaced, hissing through my teeth at her ignorance. “ _Not_ my people,” I corrected hastily. “Those people actually slaughtered and enslaved my people, as well as countless millions of others.”

This seemed to be new information to the witch. She went stock-still, brow furrowing as she frowned at me. “Why?” She asked in genuine puzzlement, “You’re the same species, that doesn’t make any sense.”

“They didn’t like our cultures,” I said with a dull shrug, then paused and gestured at myself, “nor the colors of our skin.”

“That’s stupid,” she growled, ears setting back in agitation. She stood straighter as if a thought had occurred to her, and something akin to worry crept across her face. “Is it still like that?” She pressed in a small voice.

“Kinda?” My voice faltered. “I mean, it’s definitely a _lot_ better than it used to be. The slavery and genocide are just more subtle now. And there are still quite a few racist people, especially where I live.” I took a moment to think, then added, “And there’s always a chance I’ll get murdered, or worse, but that has more to do with me being a girl.”

Shock flitted like a bird across her face, and she snarled angrily. I tensed instinctively as my brain recognized that the sound belonged to a predator, an evaluation that was at odds with my perception of the soft-hearted witch. “What the fuck, that’s _absurd_!” she protested heatedly. “Why doesn’t someone do something about it?”

I shrugged helplessly. I had no idea how to explain the convoluted concept of politics to someone who lived under a despotic dictator. I wished she would just drop the subject; I didn’t want to have to struggle to justify the prolific faults of humanity to the woefully oblivious witch.

Amity shook her head, scowling darkly. “Your world sounds awful,” she told me seriously. She studied my face intently. I don’t know what she saw there, but she closed her eyes tightly and let out a long breath. When she opened them again, the anger had mostly faded, now shimmering in the background as she forced an, albeit pained, neutral expression onto her face. “So, what’s a skyscraper?” She asked pleasantly, her voice tight with repressed emotions.

“What?” I blinked at the sudden change of topic, quickly rewinding the conversation in my head. “Oh,” I realized, scrunching my nose as I tried to think of how to describe it, “It’s a _really_ tall, narrow building. Like, super tall.”

Amity hummed softly in understanding, then cracked a strained smile. “If you’re tall for the human realm,” she said, chuckling forcibly as she tried to lighten the mood, “Then I doubt it’s as big as you say.”

I was incredibly grateful for the distraction, latching onto it tightly as I shoved the depressing thoughts of society back into its dark cage. “That’s it!” I announced dramatically, slamming my dresser’s drawers closed. I spun back to face Amity, who was struggling to stifle a grin. I crossed my arms and glowered at her. “Mean witches don’t get clean clothing,” I informed her haughtily, “So you can enjoy your slobber-clothes.”

She shrugged. “It’s not like you can stop me,” she said with a smirk, drawing a fraction of a spell circle in example.

I refused to back down, my scowl deepening. “I’ll set Tenebris on you,” I threatened in return, “She doesn’t really like you. I’m sure she’d be happy to do it.”

She narrowed her eyes and studied my face, trying to tell if I was serious. I puffed up my chest slightly to try and appear more intimidating, though I was fairly certain it was too late for that. Amity knew too much. After a few tedious moments of the standoff, she huffed a sigh and wiped away the spell. “Point taken,” she muttered lowly, putting her hands up in defeat.

“Good,” I replied warily, wondering if her surrender was a trap. “Now apologize.”

She shook her head in exasperation, flashing me a small, indulgent smile. “I’m sorry, Luz,” she drawled semi-sincerely, “for making fun of your lacking height.”

I raised a brow skeptically. “I think that was one of the shittiest apologizes I’ve ever heard,” I stated drily, then shrugged indifferently. “But I’ll accept it anyways.” I stepped back from the dresser, gesturing back to it with a flourish. “You may proceed,” I told her in a corny accent.

Amity rolled her eyes in a long-suffering way, moving back to look through my clothes again. This time, she made her decision quickly, picking out the Azura shirt once again and set it aside from herself.

“You really want to wear _that_?” I asked doubtfully, gawking at the witch.

She glanced at me, her expression neutral as she shrugged. “Like I said, it’s cute.”

I snorted. “I didn’t think you were being serious. I figured you meant it as an insult, actually.”

Amity frowned at me disapprovingly, then shook her head and turned back and started riffling through the pants drawer.

I watched her for a moment, then strode up next to her, looking through the drawer. “Here,” I told her, pulling out a pair of black leggings, “These are a little long on me, so they should fit you good.”

She took it from me with a grateful nod, cradling it and the Azura shirt against herself as she stared down at me, some foreign emotion tightening in her eyes.

I shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably. After our history session, and _especially_ after her seeing me half-naked less than an hour ago, the last thing I wanted was for Amity to be studying me that intensely. I cleared my throat awkwardly and looked away, searching my mind frantically for an escape. “Follow me,” I told her, mentally congratulating myself for not stammering, “I’ll show you to the bathroom.”

I set off down the hall with Amity following close behind. Stopping in front of the open bathroom door, I turned back to the witch. “Here we are!” I chirped. She scooted past me and into the small room, looking around as she set the clothes down on the sink. “Towels are in that basket,” I pointed towards the one in question, “The shower’s a little tricky to turn on, you gotta pull the knobs out and wiggle them around as you turn them.” I mimed the actions, foolishly demonstrating what I meant.

Amity nodded, and promptly closed the door in my face.

I huffed in irritation. “You’re welcome?!” I called exasperatedly through the door. There was no response. Rolling my eyes, I continued down the hall to Eda’s room, where King plotted with Tenebris and the Owlbeast keeping him company.

Turning the corner, I entered the room. Eda was still pacing in her magic cage, prowling back and forth in front of King, who was sitting on the floor quietly talking to her. Tenebris was nowhere to be seen. I made my way over to King, scuffing my feet lightly against the floorboards so that he heard my coming. His ears twitched at my approach, but he didn’t acknowledge me as I sat down next to him, staring up at the growling Eda.

It was a few minutes before King finally talked to me, and when he did, his voice was as thin and broken as shattered glass. “I miss her,” he said miserably, climbing into my lap and burying his face into my chest. “I hate seeing her like this.”

It felt like my chest was freezing up again. I wrapped my arms around him, trying to comfort the little demon. “I know,” I told him, my own tone as sad as his, “We’ll get her back, King.” _We have to…_

He sniffled. “But what if we can’t? What if the potion doesn’t work?” His words were muffled by my sweater, but the fear was unmistakable. “What if this time, she’s gone for good…”

The thought had occurred to me too, festering unwanted in the back of my mind. I had for the most part been ignoring it, hoping that it would simply fade away. Behind the barrier, Owl-Eda bared her teeth hungrily at me, red-flecked foam oozing from her jowls. Her pink-tinted plumage was bristled, making her appear twice as big as she stalked around the encloser, dark eyes always focused on King and I.

I couldn’t imagine it. What was the Owl House without the Owl Lady? King and I would be fending for ourselves, and there would be no Eda to protect me from the Emperor. I might even have to go back home to the human realm and continue the lonely, dead-end life I had left behind. Though Mami would be happy to have me home, and I’d enjoy spending more time with her again. But losing Eda…?

“No,” I decided, gently pulling King back so I could see his face. “We’re _not_ losing Eda,” I told him firmly, “Even if Amity’s wrong and this potion doesn’t change her back, we will find another way. I promise.”

King nodded, sniffling as he collected himself. He got off my lap, walking until he was in directly front of the cage. Eda was snarling and snapping at him, throwing herself against the cage as she tried to get to him. “You hear that, Eda?” He said, placing a paw on the pink light. “We’re going to fix this.” Eda seemed to settle down a bit, though a growl rumbled through the floor as she crouched in front of King, her lips pulled back as she stared back at the demon.

I stood, reaching out a hand to King. “C’mon,” I murmured softly, “Let’s go get ready.” Moments passed in silence, then he turned his back on her as he took my hand, letting me gently tug him out of the room.

Back in my own room, King napped on the bed as I dug through the piles of dirty clothes scattered across the floor, searching for his carry harness. Finally, I found it jammed under the dresser, the pink straps grey with dust. I shook it out, immediately coughing as the dust exploded into the air, seemingly directing itself right into my lungs. There was a twinkling laughter behind me, and I spun around, blinking rapidly to clear my watery vision.

Amity stood in the doorway, and my brain froze. It was totally unfair how cute she was. Her hair was down, the teal waves framing her face as if they were reluctant to hide her golden eyes and soft smile. My shirt fit her perfectly, even though it should have been too small. Of course it did. I focused on the amateur drawing at the center of Azura proudly holding up her staff. Seeing my childhood obsession-artwork on display was uncomfortable, I couldn’t remember the last time I had shown anyone my art. _Amity and I are basically still strangers_ , I realized as self-consciousness crept in, _why did I let her wear it?_

“Luz?”

My eyes darted back up to Amity’s face. She was frowning now.

“Are you okay?”

I nodded quickly, mentally scolding myself for staring. _Don’t be weird, Noceda_ , I chided. “Yeah.” I smiled weakly, scrambling to think of an excuse. “I was just… wondering how that shirt fits you.” I bit back a groan. That was the worst thing I could have possibly said.

She eyed me suspiciously for a moment, then glanced down at the shirt with a shrug. “It didn’t, I had to resize it.”

I blinked stupidly. I don’t know what answer I was expecting, but that was definitely not it. “You… resized it?”

Amity rolled her eyes at my eloquence. “Yes, Luz,” she said patiently, “with magic.” She waggled her fingers dorkily at me.

“Oh,” Once again, I dazzled her with my way with words. I shook my head lightly, trying to get myself back on track. “We’re almost ready,” I told her, “Have you seen Tenebris?”

Amity winced. “Yeah. She almost took my head off on my walk back here from the bathroom.” She grumbled incoherently, then sighed, staring at me pleadingly. “Why doesn’t she like me? She was sitting on my head earlier, but now she’s trying to kill me! I don’t get it.”

I shrugged lazily, skillfully dodging the question. There was no way I was telling her what set off my overprotective bird.

She huffed in frustration, narrowing her eyes at me. Clearly, she needed to be distracted.

“Wanna help me get King in his harness?” I asked, holding up the object in question.

Amity didn’t reply, still eyeing me as if I was hiding something from her. Which of course, I was, but she didn’t need to know that.

I put on my most innocent face, which coincidentally makes me look super guilty. Something about the pout, the head tilt, and the wide, begging eyes. I really have to stop trying it, it never works.

Her eyes widened fractionally, and her mouth dropped open as she sucked in a low, shaky breath. I steeled myself for her accusations, but to my surprise, they never came. Instead Amity looked away, her suddenly nervous gaze dropping to the floor. “Sure,” she told me softly, her voice wavering slightly as she gazed shyly at me through her eyelashes.

I frowned, wondering if she was okay. This was _not_ Amity-like behavior. After a moment, I dismissed it with a shrug. Whatever it was, she probably did not want me to pry. “Alright!” I chirped, smiling up at Amity. “King gets… aggressive whenever someone wakes him up from a nap, so I’ll put him in the harness. I just need you to hold it open for me while I wrangle him.”

She nodded mutely, that odd expression slowly fading into a small smile.

I quickly strapped the harness on over my sweater, double checking every buckle to make sure it was secure. Then I turned to King, smiling fondly at his adorableness. Amity appeared beside me, eyeing the demon a bit more warily. I nudged her gently, gaining her attention. “Hold onto this,” I whispered, pulling out a strap that opened the harness.

She took the strap from me, keeping it taunt as I rolled up my sleeves in preparation.

“Hey carino,” I murmured, stroking his back, “I’m gonna put you in your carrier, okay?”

King grumbled and stretched, hiding his eyes behind his paws like a cat. “Go ‘way,” he mumbled, lazily kicking at my hands with his back feet.

I ignored the claws scraping against my skin, instead gently wrapping my hands behind his shoulder blades and lifting him off the bed.

Immediately, King began to fight. “ _Nooo!”_ he squealed, thrashing wildly as he tried to escape. I winced as his claws tore into my arms and hands, opening narrow gashes in my skin. I quickly pulled him towards me, sliding him into the harness and wrestling to get his limbs in their proper holes. The little demon was writhing like a speared worm, still shrieking as his short arms pushing against mine, his legs pulled tightly against his belly as he tried to defy my efforts. I gritted my teeth against the pain, slowly shoving King further into the harness.

Thankfully, Amity intervened. She pulled King’s hind legs through the bottom, making him fall the rest of the way down. His protests subsided as he switched his focus to freeing his arms out the sides, relaxing until he was dangling limply.

I exhaled sharply, relieved it was over. “Thank you,” I told Amity sincerely. “He’s _always_ such a butt about it.”

Amity smiled, carefully clipping the straps she had held onto the top, effectively pining King in place. “No problem,” she said softly, putting a cool hand on my arm. She drew a spell circle with the other, and the throbbing pain faded as the scratches King had carved closed.

I beamed at the witch. “Thanks!” She nodded slowly, her ears going down as red crept across her face. I opened my mouth to ask her about it, but paused when King’s small voice reached me, making me glance down at him.

“I’m cold,” he complained sleepily, staring pitifully up at me.

“I got it,” Amity muttered to me, releasing my arm and moving towards the dresser. Halfway there, she turned back to me, frowning. “Do you have a cloak or something that fits over him?” She gestured to the fuzzy, grey lump sticking out from my chest.

I chewed my lower lip uncertainly. “I usually borrow one of Eda’s cloaks,” I told her hesitantly, my shoulders slumping. “But I don’t really want to wear those now. I don’t need a reminder of what’s at stake.” I shivered as cool air from the window hit my bare arms, and quickly pulled my sleeves back down.

Amity nodded, her eyes sympathetic. “Here,” she offered, fishing a bundle out from under the pillows on my bed. “You can use mine.” It unraveled into a pristine, white cloak, the clasp a shining bronze triangle; the symbol of the Emperor’s Coven lackeys. She walked back towards me, holding it out for me to take.

I reached out a hand, then paused. “Do you think I should wear that symbol?” I asked, raising an eyebrow doubtfully. “I’m kinda a criminal, if you haven’t noticed.”

“Yes, Luz, I’ve noticed,” she said drily, rolling her eyes at my idiocy. She stepped closer, throwing the cloak around me so that it draped across my shoulders. Amity gripped the loose material at the hood, using to it tug me face-to-face with her. She straightened the cloak so that it hung down properly, then began to work on closing the clasp. “It’ll be fine, as long as you stop announcing that you’re a criminal.”

I winced. “Yeah,” I agreed, smiling sheepishly up at her, “That would be wise.”

Amity rolled her eyes. “I’m so glad you understand,” she remarked drily.

A thought occurred to me. “Wait, why do you even have this cloak with you?” I asked perplexedly. “I thought you’re off shift right now.”

“I am,” she assured me distractedly. “It’s just soft and has lots of pockets.” Amity scowled down at the clasp as she missed once again, pulling me even nearer as she struggled.

My heart stuttered. I cleared my throat, rattled by her close proximity. “I do love pockets!” I chuckled nervously. “But aren’t you, like, rich?” I prodded, “Why don’t you just get a cloak custom-made for yourself?”

Her hands stilled, and her nose scrunched up cutely as she thought. “I guess I could, I never really thought of that before,” she realized, frowning slightly. Then she shook her head in rejection. “But my parents would never allow me to. They like me flaunting my position wherever I go,” she said bitterly, hands tightening in the fabric and pulling me infinitesimally closer.

At this point, her face was only inches away. My eyes darted instinctive down to her lips, then I frantically pulled my gaze back up again, desperately hoping she hadn’t noticed. She was still scowling at the clasp, thank fuck. “I’m sorry,” I told her quietly, faintly alarmed at how unsteady my voice was. “They shouldn’t treat you like that.”

Amity finally looked up from the buckle, her eyes meeting mine. They widened, and she jerked her head back sharply at how close we were. She dropped her hold on the cloak, stumbling back a step as red bloomed across her cheeks. Probably because she couldn’t stand the thought of me being that close to her. “Sorry,” she muttered, eyes fixed on the floor. “I can’t get that fucking clasp closed. I’ve never had to close it when I’m not wearing it before.” Amity cleared her throat, looking incredibly embarrassed. “You’ll probably have better luck at it.”

I shrugged, a little hurt by how fast she had backpedaled away from me. Looking down at the clasp, I tried to hook the one thing into the other thing, frowning at how hard it was. After my tenth attempt, I finally got it, the triangle clicking satisfyingly into place. “Finally!” I exclaimed, grinning victoriously up at Amity. “That was so much harder than it needed to be.”

She nodded in agreement. She stood awkwardly a few feet away, arms wrapped securely around her torso.

“Are you cold?” I asked. “You can take one of my sweatshirts, since I stole your cloak.”

Amity frowned at me. “You didn’t steal it, I gave it to you.” Then she hesitated, glancing out the window quickly before looking back at me. “Yes please,” she added quietly, “It’s cold outside.”

I nodded, waving languidly towards the closet. “Help yourself,” I told her jovially, “I’m gonna go find Tenebris. Meet you downstairs!” With that I left the room, not waiting to hear her response as I walked slowly down the staircase, trying to avoid waking King.

The main room was dark, and I fumbled in my pockets for my paper. Luckily, I had it on me this time. I pulled it out, leaning against the wall as I drew a light glyph. Immediately, bright light filled the room, making me wince and blink the spots from my eyes. The room was exactly how I had left it; jars scattered in piles around a large, black cauldron. I shivered at the memory. “Tenebris?” I called out, scanning the room for the hawk, “Are you in here?”

There was a low squawk, and Tenebris flew at me from the beam above the door, landing on my shoulder with a heavy _thump_.

“Hey, psicopata!” I smiled warmly at her, softly stroking her chest. “We’re just about ready to go, I just need to talk to Owlbert and Hooty.”

Tenebris squawked again, and this time a hoot answered her. Wingbeats echoed off the wooden floor, and Owlbert came flying into the lit circle of my small light, clutching his staff in his talons.

“Owlbert!” I greeted happily, “It’s good to see you again, pollito!” I took the staff from him as he neared, setting the end on the ground so that he could perch on the top. The owl cooed softly at me, watching me expectantly with his large, yellow eyes.

I paused for a second, wondering how to explain the situation to him. “Listen,” I began slowly, choosing my words with care, “Eda’s stuck in her Owlbeast form right now, and we think we have a way to change her back. Would you take us there?”

He eyed me somberly, then bobbed his head with a _hoot_.

I grinned. “Thank you, carino!” Owlbert closed his eyes lovingly, then turned to wood. Thumping sounded from the stairs, and I turned to see Amity enter the room, hands buried in the pockets of my purple hoodie and hair back up in its half-ponytail.

“I got us a ride!” I told her, holding out the staff. “This is Owlbert, he’s Eda’s palisman.”

She took the staff from me, looking it up and down critically before nodding shortly in approval. “Thank you, Owlbert,” she said solemnly. Then her eyes returned to me, and she gave me a small smile. “Ready to go?”

I nodded, spinning on my heel and striding towards the door, Tenebris flaring her wings to keep her balance. As we passed the cauldron, I slowed to a halt, peeking over the rim curiously. At the bottom sat a thin, circular purple stone no more than an inch in diameter. It was such a small thing to have caused so much trouble.

A shadow fell down on me as Amity caught up, and her hand entered my vision as she reached for the stone. Pulling it out, she cradled it in the palm of her hand as she examined it. I wondered if she was going to destroy it; just crush it in her hand or something equally dramatic. Instead, she drew a small spell circle, a slender length of bright, silver chain spilling through.

Amity carefully wove the chain through a small hole at the top of the petram, then looked back up to me, her face guarded. “The Owl Lady knew what she was doing,” she admitted, “This is a very well-made petram.” She leaned the staff against the cauldron, then hesitated uncertainly. To my surprise, she stepped behind me, lowering the necklace over my head. My breath caught in my throat as her hands skimmed my neck. It only took her a couple seconds to latch it, but those moments were the longest and shortest of my life.

Then Amity grabbed my shoulders, spinning me swiftly around to face her and making Tenebris caw in disapproval. “Don’t you _ever_ take that off,” she ordered, her fierce eyes boring down into mine. “Petrams are serious magic. If anything will prevent you from getting killed, it’s that.”

She paused, squeezing my shoulders as if to make sure she had my attention. “But you’re not invincible,” she warned, “that will only protect you from harmful magic. Demons or weapons will still be able to eviscerate you.”

I cracked a grin, charmed by her concern. “Oh please!” I scoffed, “I run the second I see a demon, like a good human, and I haven’t seen any weapons kicking around here.”

Amity’s eyes narrowed, and she scowled irritability at me. “Just don’t be stupid, Luz.”

I laughed. “Me? I’m a certified dumbass! My being stupid is like you being pr-powerful!” My laugh turned nervous at my screwup. “It’s innate.”

“Let’s just go,” she huffed, rolling her eyes in annoyance. She dropped her hands from my shoulders. One hand picking up the staff again and the other grabbing onto my wrist, tugging me along as she marched towards the door.

The door opened as we drew near, Hooty stretching out to greet us. “Hiiiii Luz!” He called out. My eye twitched at his unpleasant voice. “Who’s thiiisssss?”

“Hello, Hooty,” I responded, my voice strained. I took in a deep breath. _I need his help_ , I reminded myself, _So don’t be an asshole, Noceda._ “This is Amity. She’s a friend,” I told him, pleased that I sounded nicer this time.

“A friend of Luz is a friend of mine!” He crowed, blank eyes observing Amity. “Boy, it is good to meet you Amity! Hoot!”

Amity was still beside me, staring at Hooty in horrified disgust, her hand still loose on my wrist. I gently pulled my arm upwards until my hand slid into hers, giving it a soft squeeze. That snapped her out of it. Her expression turned startled as she glanced over at me.

 _Kindness_ , I mouthed, jerking my head pointedly towards the door-owl. Amity made a face, but faced Hooty again, forcing a tense smile. “It’s nice to meet you too, Hooty,” she said slowly, each word dragging in reluctance. She glanced down at me again, as if she was checking to make sure I approved. I did, and awarded her with a small, grateful smile for her efforts.

I faced Hooty again. “Hooty, we’re going out. Watch the house, Okay?” I told him seriously, staring into his creepy eyes to make sure he got it. “Don’t let anyone in, and if Eda escapes…” I trailed off, at a loss for suggestions. “Just… don’t let her kill you.”

“Hoot!” He cried in an odd parody of laughter. “Don’t you worry about me Luz, I cannot die!”

Amity shuddered next to me. “Lovely,” she muttered lowly.

I elbowed her. “Thanks, Hooty,” I said, smiling sincerely at the demented bird. This time I led the way, tightening my hand in hers as I pulled her past Hooty and out the door, which promptly slammed closed beside us. Tenebris took off from my shoulder to circle above us as she waited.

Ten feet from the house, I came to a stop. “Um, do you happen to know how to fly staffs?” I asked nervously. “Because I sure don’t.”

“Of course I do,” came her flippant response. “It’s required that witches learn before graduating.” She turned the staff horizontal, letting go so that it hovered a few feet off the ground. Then she dropped my hand and climbed on the staff, where she looked back at me expectantly.

I cradled my hands to my chest uncertainly, narrowing my eyes suspiciously at the self-assured witch. “Why do I have a feeling you’re gonna get us killed?”

Amity laughed softly, shaking her head in amusement. “I won’t, dummy,” she chided gently, smiling alluringly at me, “That’s what you’re here for. My job is to get us out of those situations.”

We were the same height now that she was floating alongside me, I appreciated not having to tilt my head to see her face. And it did seem like she knew what she was doing, although Amity is confident in everything she does. Still, I hesitated. I had the same bad feeling I always got before I was jumped by jocks looking for someone to torment; a tight, panicky sensation in my ribs, as if I was on the edge of a cliff about to fall into the roaring waters below. As if something were about to go terribly wrong.

She drifted a closer, reaching down to pick up one of my hands and squeezing it reassuringly. “It’s okay, Luz,” she murmured in a soothing voice, “I won’t let you fall. I’ll always catch you- I promise.”

I stared down at my hand. Her thumb was tracing gentle circles on the back of it, though I was too deeply in my own head to really feel it. Nevertheless, I trusted her. “Yeah, alright,” I muttered shakily, flashing her a small, anxious smile.

Amity gently pulled me in, and I clambered onto the staff behind her, legs stiff with nervous anticipation. She watched me for a moment, making sure I was secure before turning back around. The staff started moving, slowly picking up speed and altitude until we were soaring through the starry night sky, Tenebris flapping steadily alongside us. It was a _lot_ smoother than any of Eda’s takeoffs, that’s for sure.

My jaw dropped open as I gawked at the heavens, literally starstruck by wide array of celestials. “It’s beautiful…” I whispered in awe, “It’s like we are a part of the sky!”

Amity’s ears twitched as I spoke, and she glanced back to smile warmly at me. “It is,” she agreed, her voice equally soft, “We could fly away and visit the stars. Then nothing would be just as real as everything.”

I hummed in quiet agreement, tipping my head back so that I could see the rounded frame of space. The Cheshire-moon glowed brightly in the distance, shining down on us from hundreds of thousands of miles away. Tenebris glided alongside it, the hawk that chased the moon. I sighed as I let my body relax, my previous fears shoved aside. I leaned my head against Amity, closing my eyes and enjoying the wind blowing through my hair and the warm heater that was King.

Time passed, neither of us speaking as Amity guided us to our destination. It occurred to me that I probably should have asked where we were going. That seems like an important detail. I shifted forwards slightly, lifting my head to place my chin down on her shoulder. “Where exactly are we going?” I asked quietly, conscious of how close I was to her ear.

Amity tensed. “A girl I used to be friends with during school is in the Potions Coven,” she told me, angling her head so that she could see me. “She owes me a favor or two, so I’m going to get her to make this potion for you.”

“Oh,” I breathed, Amity shivering beneath my head. “‘Used to?’ What happened?”

She shifted uncomfortably. “I had a change of heart,” she said cryptically, “She’s… not a very nice person. You’ll see, we’re almost to her house.”

I nodded, wisely letting the subject drop. I removed my head from Amity’s shoulder, instead electing to watch Tenebris glide on the cool nighttime air. It was mesmerizing.

Only a few more minutes passed before we started to descend through the thinning trees. Up ahead- or, down ahead, there was a manor rising proudly from the forest, roof shining red in the light of the moon.

Amity slowed to a crawl as we got closer, circling around the large house until we came to an elegant balcony sticking out from the side. She carefully directed the staff onto it, waiting until I hopped off before stepping down as well, returning the staff to a vertical position on the ground. “Alright,” she whispered, handing me the staff. “Stay here until I call for you. And let me do the talking. You just focus on refraining from doing something stupid.”

My mouth quirked up in a grin as I shot the witch a cocky salute with my free hand. Tenebris landed heavily on my head, pitching me forward effectively ruining any chance of Amity believing I would behave.

She, of course, rolled her eyes at me in exasperation. Then she sucked in deep breath and turned towards the double doors. Our view of the inside was blocked by curtains, but I imagined we would enter into a dark, vampiric chamber. Or perhaps it’d be a mad scientist style potion lab, complete with sad, malnourished animals locked up in small cages. My anticipation grew, and I found myself leading forward eagerly to catch a glimpse. Tenebris hopped gracelessly down onto my shoulder to keep herself from falling off.

Amity rolled her shoulders, then threw open the doors, marching into the dark room beyond. “Wake up, Boscha,” I heard her snap, followed by a yelp and the heavy _thunk_ of something hitting the floor. Purple light suddenly streamed out of the room.

A stranger’s voice spoke. “What the _fuck_ , Amity?!” It yelled angrily, “What are you doing here?!”

“Cashing in a favor,” growled Amity. “Now.”

“Absolutely not,” the other girl, who must have been Boscha, retorted. “It’s the middle of the night! Go the fuck away!”

Amity’s voice lowered angrily. I could practically imagine how see looked: arms folded threateningly, a dark scowl on her face as she glowered at Boscha. “You _owe_ me,” she repeated, “And this is important. So, wake your ass up and be civil.”

If she got a reply, it was too quiet for me to hear it. The suspension was killing me, I had to know what was going on. _One little peek can’t hurt_ , I decided. I snuck forward until I could see through the doors.

Unfortunately, the room wasn’t like anything I had imagined. Instead of being the evil lair of a deranged witch, it was simply a rather extravagant bedroom. The witch that was glaring daggers at Amity didn’t look particularly threatening either. She was shorter than Amity, though still taller than me, and had long pink hair. Her three eyes were all fixed on Amity as if she was trying to melt her with a scathing stare.

Even more unfortunately, her facing Amity meant that she was also facing me. Her eyes darted to me as I poked my head out, widening out of their glare to blink at me in surprise.

“Who’s _that?_ ” She asked Amity, as if I was squished roadkill she was trying to identify. Her lips curled into a nasty sneer. “A _human?_ Amity… what are you doing with one of those things?” On my shoulder, Tenebris screeched in outrage, feathers fluffing up irately.

Amity whirled around to face me, the piercing glare now redirected towards me. “I told you stay outside,” she hissed lowly.

“You did…” I agreed, giving her a small, sheepish smile. “I’m sorry, I was curious!”

Her scowl lessened minutely, and she jerked her head for me to join her. I did with a grin, waving softly at the strange witch. Even if she is an asshole, that doesn’t mean I should be. “Boscha, this is Luz,” Amity introduced, “She’s a human I’m… assisting.”

“Hello!” I chirped.

Boscha did not return my greeting. She leered at me, blue eyes menacing. “Who cares,” she snapped, her gaze turning malicious as it darted back to Amity, “Does your mother know your consorting with her?” She asked sweetly.

A growl rumbled from Amity, and she took an aggressive step towards her. “Don’t you dare,” she hissed darkly.

The situation was escalating fast. This called for some good ol’ Noceda interventions. “Wow,” I said quickly, pulling Amity back, “Amity was right, you’re a _massive_ bitch!”

Boscha’s face screwed up even more, her anger practically seeping from her pores. “Shut it, human,” she jeered, “I don’t care about whatever you have to say.”

I smiled at her winningly. “Oh, you should,” I assured her. “Whatever Amity has over you must be pretty big, right? So, that kinda means you have to do anything for her.” Amity relaxed slightly, and I dropped my grip on her arm. “Plus,” I continued confidently, “She’s a cop, and it’d be a shame if you got arrested for, say… insulting the Emperor.”

“What’s a cop?” Amity muttered to me in confusion.

I waved her off gently, still watching Boscha as she scowled at me, clearly thinking through what I had said.

“Fine,” she huffed irritably, the aggression draining from her body. She turned back to Amity, eyes flashing. “What do you want from me?” She demanded.

Amity smirked at her victory, then drew a spell circle. The potion she’d grabbed from Eda’s room fell into her hand, and she lobbed it at Boscha. “I need you to make me a case of those,” she told the grouchy witch, “As potent as you can.”

Boscha caught the bottle easily, eyes skimming over the label attached. Her eyebrows raised, and she glanced up at Amity. “A curse prevention potion?” She said doubtfully, “Why do you need those?”

“None of your business,” Amity snapped. “Can you make it or not?”

Boscha frowned, getting the dazed look of someone who was running tough calculations in their head. “Yes,” she said finally, “But I’ll need you to get some of the rarer ingredients for me.”

Amity scowled. “What do you need?”

Boscha hummed, tapping a finger against her chin. “A dozen vials of demon essence, and a couple bushels of oregano.”

I laughed shortly, gaining the attention of the witches. “Oregano?” I asked humorously, “You can’t be serious.”

Boscha glared at me. “I’m very serious,” she snapped. “It’s one of the rarest herbs in the Isles, so good luck finding it.”

Amity was watching me intently. “Do you know where we can get some?” She inquired softly.

I nodded vigorously. “It’s a very common plant in the human realm,” I informed her, “Mami will have some, so we can just stop by my house for it.”

“Oh,” Amity stated, a shocked look etched onto her face, “That is very convenient.”

“Yep!” I chirped, bouncing on my heels impatiently. “What about the demon essence? Where do we get that?”

Amity sighed, taking the staff from me. “My old school will definitely have some in stock,” she muttered grumpily, “So we’ll head there.” She looked back at Boscha. “We’ll be back in a few hours with the ingredients,” she promised.

“I hope you get eaten,” mumbled Boscha in return.

Amity rolled her eyes and grabbed my wrist, pulling me back through the balcony doors with her.

“So,” I said excitedly, “We’re going to your old school next?”

“Yep,” she replied unenthusiastically, “To Hexside we go.”


End file.
